Method of enhancing cognitive ability in infant fed DHA containing baby-food compositions

ABSTRACT

Methods for enhancing cognitive ability in infants are shown. The methods comprise feeding infants baby-food compositions containing docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) in an amount of at least about 0.5 mg per gram of the composition. Infants fed a composition containing DHA from an age of about 6 months to about one year exhibit improved problem solving ability compared to infants fed a composition containing DHA in an amount less than about 5 mg per 100 grams total composition over the same period. The source of the DHA can be DHA-enriched coagulated egg yolk solids present in an amount of from about 5% to about 25% (grams/100 grams). Also shown are methods of making the DHA-enriched baby-food compositions, and methods of providing the compositions to a consumer.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 10/702,760 filed Nov. 6, 2003 now U.S. Pat. No. 7,141,266,which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No.10/460,687 filed Jun. 12, 2003 now abandoned, which is a continuation ofU.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/716,518 filed Nov. 20, 2000, nowU.S. Pat. No. 6,579,551, which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 09/082,634 filed May 21, 1998, now U.S. Pat. No.6,149,964. All of the aforementioned applications and patents areincorporated herein in their entireties by reference.

GOVERNMENT CONTRACT

The development of this invention was supported in part by grant numberHD22380 awarded by the National Institutes of Health. The U.S.Government may, therefore, have certain rights in this invention.

FIELD

This invention relates generally to food compositions and, moreparticularly, to baby-food compositions comprising docosahexaenoic acid(DHA) and to methods of using the compositions to improve the health anddevelopment of an infant including enhancing cognitive ability.

INTRODUCTION

Long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LCPUFA) such as the ω-3 fattyacid, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), have been shown to be requirednutrients for optimal maturation of visual and cortical function inhuman infants (See, for example, Hoffman et al., Am. J. Clin. Nutr.57(suppl.):807S-12S, 1993; Makrides et al., Lancet 345:1463-1468, 1995).Evidence indicates that breast-fed infants have a long-term advantage incognitive development over formula-fed infants (Rogers, Dev. Med. ChildNeurol. 20: 421-426, 1978). Several studies suggest that deficiency informula of LCPUFA such as DHA can be an important factor correlatingwith these observations (Makrides et al., Pediatr. Res. 33: 425-427,1993; Neuringer et al., Proc. Nat'l. Acad. Sci. USA 83: 4021-4025,1986). Although the minimum dietary amount of DHA required by infantshas not been unequivocally established, the Food and AgricultureOrganization and World Health Organization recommend 40 mg/kg bodyweight for preterm infants and 20 mg/kg for term infants (FAO/WHO ExpertConsultation on Fats and Oils in Human Nutrition, FAO 1994, Rome, pp.52-55). For term infants this is about 70 mg at birth in about 420calories and 140 mg at 6 months of age in about 700 calories.

LCPUFA such as DHA can be provided to breast-fed infants through theirmother's milk, which contains a full-complement of both ω-6 and ω-3polyunsaturated fatty acids (Hoffman et al, 1993, supra; Makrides etal., 1995, supra; Innis et al, Am. J. Clin. Nutr 60:347-352, 1994). Theconcentration of DHA in breast milk can, however, vary depending uponthe mother's diet and in addition, many infants are not breast-fed orare breast-fed only for a few weeks and subsequently must rely on infantformula and solid baby food for their nutritional requirements.

In the past, infant formulas sold in the United States have notcontained DHA (Jensen et al., J. Pediatr. 131:200-209, 1997). However,term infants fed formula supplemented with LCPUFA up to 4-months of ageshowed improved cognitive development at 10 months of age (Willats etal., Lancet 352: 688-691, 1998) and eighteen months of age (Birch etal., Dev. Med. Child Neurol. 42:174-181).

Semi-solid foods fed to babies contain DHA in less than a substantialamount. The amount of DHA in semi-solid foods is less than 5 mg DHA/100grams of composition. Intake of fat from such semi-solid foods does notincrease plasma DHA levels, in contrast to breast feeding (Luukkainen etal., J. Pediatr. Gastroenterol. Nutr. 23: 229-234, 1996).

Sources of DHA that have been added to infant formula to increase thecontent of DHA include marine oil, extracted egg-yolk lipids and lipidsderived from animal tissue phospholipids (U.S. Pat. No. 4,670,285 toClandinin; Uauy, et al., J. Pediatr. 134:612-620, 1994; Makrides, etal., 1995, supra; Carlson, J. Nutr.126:10925-10985, 1996). However,marine oil tends to have a strong fishy taste and odor and thus can bepoorly suited for a solid baby food. In addition, lipids extracted fromegg yolk and animal tissue are susceptible to oxidative deterioration.Also, with respect to semi-solid baby-food preparations, production offish and/or animal oils requires extensive processing, so that the useof such processed oils in a baby-food composition would diverge from the“whole food” and “natural food” concepts of baby food which is popularamong caregivers.

One dietary source of DHA in adult foods is whole egg yolk or egg yolksolids. Semi-solid baby-food compositions currently or previously soldcommercially in the United States have contained either a small amountof egg-yolk solids, i.e. less than 5%, or a large amount of egg-yolksolids, i.e. about 29% to 30% or more, neither of which is entirelysatisfactory as a food source. Baby-food compositions containing lessthan 5% egg-yolk solids do not provide the amount of nutritionalcomponents available in the compositions having higher percentages ofegg yolk, whereas baby-food compositions with the higher percentages ofegg yolk have not been organoleptically acceptable, i.e., have beenextremely poor in taste and, as a result, are no longer commerciallyavailable. Indeed, it is well known that infants typically reject cookedegg yolk, apparently because of its strong taste and gritty, mealytexture.

Although hens' eggs ordinarily contain only very low amounts of DHA,hens fed a diet enriched with DHA or DHA precursor can contain about89-112 mg DHA per egg yolk or about 10 mg DHA per gram of egg-yolksolids. See Table 1, infra. Such DHA-enriched eggs have been developedas sources of DHA for human consumption (Herber et al., Poultry Sci75:1501-1507, 1996; Oh, U.S. Pat. No. 5,415,879, 1995). Furthermore,infant diets containing DHA-enriched egg yolks increased the amount ofDHA in the blood of formula fed infants up to levels similar to those ofbreast fed infants (Gibson et al., Eggs as a Source of EssentialDocosahexaenoic Acid (DHA) in the Diets of Weaning Infants, RuralIndustries Research & Development Corporation, 1998). Nevertheless,these investigations provided no suggestion as to how such DHA-enrichedeggs might be incorporated into an organoleptically acceptablesemi-solid baby-food preparation or one that is shelf-stable andcommercially viable.

Thus, there remains a continuing need for a semi-solid, shelf-stable,baby-food composition that can be used to improve cognitive ability inan infant.

SUMMARY

Accordingly, the inventors herein have succeeded in discovering thatdietary DHA can be supplemented in breast-fed infants by feeding theinfants semi-solid baby foods containing DHA, and that infantsbreast-fed for an average of 9 months and who receive semi-solid babyfoods containing DHA have improved cognitive ability compared to similarinfants who receive semi-solid baby foods that contain less than 5 mgDHA/100 grams of composition. The amount of DHA comprised by acomposition of the present teachings can be at least sufficient toprovide at least 45 milligrams of DHA in a day to an infant. In variousconfigurations, the baby-food composition can be a shelf-stablesemi-solid baby-food composition comprising DHA in an amount of at leastabout 50 mg DHA/100 grams of composition in an acceptable baby-foodpreparation. Accordingly, in various embodiments, the present teachingsdisclose methods for improving cognitive ability in an infant. A methodof these embodiments can comprise feeding the infant a semi-solidbaby-food composition comprising at least about 50 mg DHA/100 grams ofcomposition in an acceptable baby-food preparation. The improvedcognitive function following administration of a DHA-containingsemi-solid baby food described herein has not heretofore, been known orsuggested to occur. The cognitive ability improvement is an improvementcompared to cognitive ability in control infants that receive semi-solidbaby foods that contain less than about 5 mg DHA100 grams composition ina day. The improvement in cognitive function can be shown upon measuringcognitive ability during the period of feeding the infant thecompositions of the present invention, and beyond. Cognitive ability canbe measured by any of a number of methods known in the art. One suchwell known method of assessing cognitive development in an infant is themeasuring of means-ends problem solving ability (Willatts et al., Lancet352: 688-691, 1998). In various embodiments, means-ends problem-solvingability can be tested at an age of at least about 8 months to age ofabout one year. In some configurations, means-ends problem-solvingability can be tested at an age of about 9 months. The compositions andmethods of the present invention improve problem-solving ability ininfants. Another well known method of assessing cognitive development inan infant is an assessment of the infant's mental development index(MDI) in accordance with the Bayley neurodevelopmental scales (Bayley,N. The Bayley Scales of Infant Development II. New York: New YorkPsychological Corp., 1993). In various embodiments, MDI can be assessedat an age of at least about one year to an age of about 36 months. Insome configurations, MDI can be assessed at an age of about 18 months.In various embodiments, cognitive ability of infants of ages of about 3years to about 7 years, 3 months can be assessed through administrationof an IQ test such as the Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale ofIntelligence (WPPSI) test (Wechsler, J. Wechsler Preschool and PrimaryScale of Intelligence. San Antonio: The Psychological Corp., 1989). Insome configurations, cognitive ability can be assessed using the WPPSItest at an age of about 4 years. The compositions and methods of thepresent invention improve mental development index in infants.

In various configurations, methods of the present teachings can comprisefeeding an infant at least about 50 grams of a DHA-comprising semi-solidbaby-food composition described herein in a day. Furthermore, in variousconfigurations, a semi-solid baby-food composition of the presentteachings can comprise at least about 50 mg DHA/100 grams, at leastabout 100 mg DHA/100 grams, or at least about 115 mg DHA/100 grams ofcomposition. Hence, in various configurations, a baby-food jarcomprising 113 grams of baby-food can comprise at least about 56milligrams, at least about 113 milligrams, or at least about 130milligrams of DHA, and methods of the present teachings can comprisefeeding an infant at least about 50 grams of composition of the presentteachings in a day, at least about 100 grams of composition in a day,about 113 grams of baby-food composition (i.e., the amount ofcomposition comprised by standard baby-food jar) in a day, or more.

In various embodiments, feeding an infant a composition of the presentteachings can commence as early as an infant will ingest semi-solidfood, which can be, in non-limiting example, as early as about 4 monthsof age, about 5 months of age, or about 6 months of age. Feeding theinfant a composition can continue until the age of about 9 months, theage of about one year, or older. In various aspects, a composition canbe fed to an infant as a supplement to breast feeding or as a substitutefor breast feeding.

In various embodiments, cognitive ability can be improved in infants asevidenced by test scores in means-ends problem solving tests. In theseconfigurations, average test scores can increase by at least about 10%,at least about 20%, at least about 30%, at least about 40%, or at leastabout 50%, in infants fed a DHA-enriched composition described hereinfrom an age of about 6 months, in comparison to infants fed a semi-solidbaby food composition that contains less than about 5 milligrams DHA/100grams composition. In these configurations, problem-solving tests can beadministered at the age of about 9 months or older, such as an age ofabout one year.

In various embodiments, an improvement in cognitive ability in infantsfed a DHA-containing semi-solid baby food described herein compared tocontrol infants can be evidenced by an increase in average MDI scores ofat least about 1%, at least about 2%, at least about 3% or at leastabout 4% in infants fed a DHA-enriched composition described herein froman age of about 6 months, in comparison to infants fed a semi-solid babyfood composition that contains less than about 5 mg DHA/100 grams ofcomposition. In certain configurations, infants fed a DHA-enrichedcomposition described herein during the ages of about 6 months to about9 months or older, such as one year, can show an increase in MDI scorewhen assessed at an age between about 16 months and about 20 months, orolder. In certain configurations, an assessment of MDI can be conductedat the age of about 18 months. Accordingly, infants fed a formulation ofthe present teachings from an age of about 6 months to an age of aboutone year can exhibit increased cognitive ability, as compared to controlinfants fed a semi-solid baby food composition that contains less thanabout 5 mg DHA/100 gram composition, over the same developmental timeperiod, when tested at an age suitable for an assessment of MDI, whichcan be, in various configurations, at least about one year, at leastabout 18 months, or at least about 4 years.

In various embodiments of the present teachings, infants or children of2 years of age, 3 years of age, 4 years of age, or older, who as infantsbetween about 6 months and 9 months of age, or between about 6 monthsand one year of age, are fed a DHA-containing semi-solid baby fooddescribed herein, exhibit improved cognitive ability, in comparison tocontrol infants and children, who, as infants, are fed a semi-solid babyfood composition that contains less than about 5 mg DHA/100 grams ofcomposition over the same developmental time periods. Enhanced cognitivefunction in children fed a DHA-enriched diet of the present teachings asinfants can be evidenced by increased average scores on IQ tests. Anincrease in average IQ test score can be expected to be at least about 2points as measured using the WPPSI test.

The amount of DHA which produces the enhancement can be about 50 mg DHAor greater per 100 grams of the composition.

Accordingly, in various embodiments, the present teachings are directedto a semi-solid baby-food composition. The composition comprises DHA inan amount of at least about 50 mg DHA/100 grams of the composition. Thecomposition is in an acceptable, shelf-stable baby-food preparation.

In various embodiments, the present teachings are also directed tomethods for improving cognitive ability in an infant. The methodscomprise feeding to the infant, a shelf-stable semi-solid baby-foodcomposition containing DHA in an amount of at least about 50 mg DHA/100grams of composition. The composition can be in an acceptable baby-foodpreparation.

In one aspect these methods can comprise providing a semi-solidbaby-food composition having a formula selected on the basis of itscontaining DHA in an amount of at least about 50 mg DHA/100 grams ofcomposition in an acceptable, shelf-stable baby-food preparation. Thebaby-food composition can be fed to the infant to produce theimprovement in cognitive ability.

In various embodiments, the present teachings are also directed to amethod for a providing to a consumer, a baby-food composition thatimproves cognitive ability in an infant. The method can compriseproviding a shelf-stable semi-solid baby-food composition having aformula selected on the basis of its containing DHA in an amount of atleast about 50 mg DHA/100 grams of composition in an acceptable,shelf-stable baby-food preparation. The baby-food composition can thenbe sold to the consumer. In various embodiments, the DHA can be in anamount of at least about 100 mg per 100 grams of composition. In certainaspects, the baby-food composition can comprise about 113 grams (about 4ounces) of composition, and can be comprised by a container such as astandard baby-food jar.

The acceptability of the baby-food compositions in various embodimentsincludes the organoleptic acceptability, which can be measured, forexample by determining the value on a nine-point hedonic scale. Acomposition is considered, herein, to be organoleptically acceptable ifthe Appearance/Color, Flavor, and Mouthfeel/Texture of the compositioneach score at least about five or greater on a nine-point hedonic scale.

In various embodiments of the present invention, the baby-foodcomposition can comprise coagulated egg yolk solids in an amount of fromabout 5% to about 25% (grams/100 grams) of the composition, i.e. fromabout 5 grams egg yolk solids per 100 grams composition to about 25grams egg yolk solids per 100 grams composition. The coagulated egg yolksolids that are incorporated into the composition can contain DHA in anamount of at least about 9 mg DHA/gram of egg yolk solids, therebysubstantially providing the DHA present in the composition.

The organoleptic acceptability in terms of Mouthfeel/Texture can beachieved by adding an acidulant or by processing the baby-foodcomposition with a microcutter. Either approach can produce a smoothMouthfeel/Texture scoring at least 5 on a nine-point hedonic scale. Theacidulant when present, can be an acid, a cultured food substancecontaining lactic acid, or a fruit or vegetable component whichcontributes acidity to the composition. Incorporated acids can includecitric acid, phosphoric acid, acetic acid or vinegar and combinationsthereof. Suitable fruits or vegetables include juices or purees ofapple, apricot, banana, beets, blueberry, carrots, celery, cherry,clementine, cress, elderberry, grape, grapefruit, lemon, mango, orange,papaya, peach, pear, pineapple, plum, raspberry, rhubarb, sorrel,strawberry, sweet potato, tomato, and combinations thereof.

In various embodiments, the present invention is also directed to ababy-food composition comprising from about 5% to about 25% coagulatedegg-yolk solids (grams/100 grams) in absence of added acidulant. Thecomposition is in an acceptable, shelf-stable baby-food preparation forwhich Appearance/Color, Flavor, and Mouthfeel/Texture scores on anine-point hedonic scale are each at least about five. In variousaspects of this embodiment, the use of a microcutter achieves a smoothMouthfeel/Texture scoring five or greater on a nine-point hedonic scale.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present teachings are based upon the discovery that a semi-solidbaby food containing DHA in an amount of at least about 50 mg DHA per100 grams composition (0.05% w/w), can improve the cognitive ability ofbreast-fed infants receiving the composition. The cognitive abilityimprovement is an improvement compared to cognitive ability in infantsthat receive semi-solid baby foods containing less than about 5 mg DHAper 100 grams of composition. In some embodiments, an improvement incognitive ability can result from feeding an infant a semi-solid babyfood of the present teachings commencing from the time an infant canconsume semi-solid food, such as, in non-limiting example, during theages of about 4 months to about 9 months, about 5 months to about 9months, or about 6 months to about 9 months. The improvement can bedetected by testing, for example as early as about 9 months of age, atabout one year of age, at about 18 months of age, or at about four yearsof age.

Semi-solid compositions of the present teachings can be distinguishedfrom liquid compositions such as infant formula or juices and can becharacterized in that they have a high viscosity and possess qualitiesof both a liquid and a solid. Vegetable and fruit purees are typicalexamples of semi-solid compositions. In various configurations of thepresent invention, a composition can be in dried form which can bereconstituted to produce a semi-solid baby-food. Such dried andreconstituted products are intended to be included within the meaning ofthe term semi-solid baby-food composition.

The term baby or infant as used herein is intended to mean a child inthe first period of life generally considered to be in the age range offrom birth to about four years. As used herein, the terms cognitiveability and cognitive function are synonymous, and refer to cognitivefunction that can be measured using one or more different tests that arewell known to persons of skill in the art, such as child psychologistsand educators. As used herein, the phrase “in a day” is intended to meanwithin or over the course of a twenty-four hour period.

An acceptable baby-food composition or an acceptable baby-foodpreparation is intended to encompass semi-solid food preparations whichcan be fed to a baby or an infant and meeting all of the regulatory andorganoleptic requirements for such compositions.

In various embodiments, the compositions of the present invention can beshelf stable. By shelf stable with respect to a baby-food composition,it is meant that the composition can be stored un-refrigerated on theshelf for a period of time and remain suitable for consumption.Shelf-stable foods can be processed and packaged in a manner such thatmicroorganisms are inhibited from growing in the product atnon-refrigerated temperatures of storage over 40° F. (4° C.) forextended periods.

Although the compositions of the present teachings are referenced hereinas baby-food compositions, the compositions can, of course, be consumedby other population groups such as, for example, individuals who aresick or those who have special nutritional requirements, such as, forexample, geriatric individuals.

In various embodiments, egg yolks can serve as the source of DHA in thebaby-food compositions of the present invention. The baby-foodcompositions can comprise coagulated egg yolk solids in amounts of fromabout 5% to about 25%, from about 6% or about 7% to about 20%, fromabout 10% to about 15%, or from about 12% to about 13% of thecomposition.

The term “about” is intended to include small variances, for example 0.5percentage points above and below a given value. Thus, in variousembodiments, a value referenced, for example, as 15% can mean 14.5% to15.5%.

The term egg-yolk solids is intended to mean the solids present innatural egg yolk or in dried egg-yolk products such as those commonlyused as ingredients in the food industry. The egg-yolk solids can be inthe yolk of a whole hen's egg as separated from the shell or in an eggyolk separated from the whole hen's egg or in a purified form in whichsome or all of the water has been removed from the egg yolk. The amountof solids in egg yolk from hens' eggs and dried egg-yolk products, canbe determined using known methods, and are typically about 46% and about96%, respectively.

As noted above, certain baby-food compositions containing egg yolk arecurrently commercially available while other baby-food compositionscontaining egg yolk were available in the past but are no longeravailable. However, none of these compositions are believed to havecontained from about 5% to about 25% egg-yolk solids (see Example 1below).

In certain embodiments, the egg-yolk solids contain high levels of DHAas a result of being produced from eggs laid by hens fed a diet enrichedwith DHA or DHA precursors such as one containing DHA from marine algae,fish oil or other source of DHA or alpha-linolenic acid from flaxseed orcanola or soybean. (See, for example, Herber et al., 1996, supra; Oh,1995, supra; Abril et al., International Conference on The Return of ω-3Fatty Acids Into the Food Supply: I. Land-Based Animal Food Products andTheir Health Effects, Sep. 18-19, 1997; Scheideler et al., InternationalConference on The Return of ω-3 Fatty Acids Into the Food Supply: I.Land-Based Animal Food Products and Their Health Effects, Sep. 18-19,1997). Such DHA-enriched eggs are commercially available and their yolksolids can typically contain from about 9 to about 19 mg DHA per gram.The amount of DHA in egg-yolk solids can be measured using methods knownin the art (see Example 2 below). In various embodiments, the amount ofcoagulated egg yolk solids in the baby-food composition can be fromabout 5% to about 25%. A composition containing 5% egg yolk solidswhich, in turn, contain about 9 mg to about 19 mg DHA per gram wouldcontain about 0.45 mg to about 0.95 mg DHA per gram composition. Thus,the DHA containing eggs can be used to produce a baby-food compositionhaving a minimum of about 0.5 mg to about 1 mg DHA per gram composition.

In various embodiments, the source of DHA-enriched egg yolk and/or theamount of DHA-enriched egg-yolk solids can be selected such that thebaby-food composition comprises sufficient DHA to provide the minimumdaily recommended amount of about 20 mg/kg/day or about 70 mg for thenewborn and about 140 mg for the 6 month infant in one or two servings.For example, a typical jar of commercial baby food for six month infantscontains four ounces or 113 grams of baby-food composition. DHA can,thus, be present in an amount of 70 mg/113 grams (0.6 mg/gm) or 140mg/113 grams (1.2 mg/gm). For convenience, the composition can also beprepared to contain 150 mg DHA per 100 g of baby food, which wouldamount to 165 mg DHA per jar. This amount of DHA can be provided byDHA-enriched egg yolks containing 12 mg of DHA per gram egg-yolk solidsand the composition would thus contain 14 grams egg-yolk solids per jaror about 12.5% (gm/100 gm) egg-yolk solids.

Feeding DHA-containing baby-food compositions of the present inventionto an infant from the age of about six months up to the age of about oneyear can improve the cognitive ability of the infant, in comparison toan infant fed a composition which comprises less than about 5 milligramsDHA per 100 grams composition during the same ages. An improvement incognitive ability in an infant or child fed a DHA-enriched baby-foodcomposition of the present teachings can be detected in comparativetests of cognitive ability during infancy, for example at about 9 monthsof age, at about 12 months of age, or at about 18 months of age, orduring childhood, for example at an age of about four years, or older.

Feeding DHA-containing baby-food compositions of the present inventionto an infant can be on a daily basis or on an intermittent basis suchas, for example, for two or three days per week. Feeding can also occurfor a portion of the period of from about six months to about one year,for example, from about six months to about 9 months. Moreover, feedingan infant semi-solid food can begin earlier than 6 months, for exampleat 4 or 5 months or even less, depending upon the baby's development.

The improvement in cognitive ability can be shown upon measuringcognitive ability over the period of feeding the infant the compositionsof the present invention, and after further development. Cognitiveability can be measured by any of a number of methods known in the art.One such well known method of assessing cognitive development in aninfant is the measuring of means-ends problem solving ability (Willattset al., Lancet 352: 688-691, 1998). These tests measure an infant'sability to recall the location of a hidden toy, and plan and execute asequence of actions to retrieve it. First an adult places a toy upon afirst cloth and moves both back away from an infant. The infant isrequired to pull the cloth, and then grasp the toy. Next the adult putsthe toy close to the child and places a second cloth over the toy. Theinfant is required to remove the cloth and grasp the toy. If the infantfails to perform these pre-test tasks, the trial is terminated. For thescored test, the adult places the toy on the first cloth, covers the toywith the second cloth, and then moves everything back away from theinfant. It is up to the infant to reach out and grab the first cloth,pull it together with the toy and second cloth towards himself orherself, lift the second cloth, and grasp the toy. The infant is giventhree such scored trials. Each trial can be scored on a scale from −1 to12 based upon the infant's ability to focus and complete the task. Invarious configurations, average means-ends problem solving test scoresfor 9 month old infants fed a DHA-enriched composition of the presentteachings from an age of about 6 months to an age of about 9 months, canbe at least about 10%, at least about 20%, at least about 30%, at leastabout 40%, or at least about 50% greater than average means-ends problemsolving test scores for control 9 month old infants fed a semi-solidbaby food composition that contains less than about 5 mg DHA/100 gramsof composition, from an age of about 6 months to an age of about 9months.

Another well known method of assessing cognitive development in aninfant is an assessment of the infant's mental development index (MDI)in accordance with the Bayley neurodevelopmental scales (Bayley, N. TheBayley Scales of Infant Development II. New York: New York PsychologicalCorp., 1993). For children ages of about 3 years to about 7 years, 3months, general intellectual function can be assessed using an IQ testprocedure such as the Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale ofIntelligence (WPPSI) test (Wechsler, J. Wechsler Preschool and PrimaryScale of Intelligence. San Antonio: The Psychological Corp., 1989).

The egg yolk containing compositions of the present invention can be inacceptable baby-food formulations. The terms acceptable baby-foodformulation are used interchangeably herein with the terms acceptablebaby-food composition and acceptable baby-food preparation. Anacceptable baby-food formulation is one suitable for feeding to a babyand included within the meaning of the terms acceptable baby-foodformulation is any regulatory agency requirements for foods intended forconsumption by infants. For example, lactic acid and malic acid havebeen reviewed by the Food and Drug Administration and determined not tobe generally recognized as safe for use in baby foods for infants in thefirst year of life. (See 21 C.F.R. §184.1061, §184.1069). Thus, theseacids would not be incorporated into an acceptable baby-foodformulation. On the other hand, the use of citric acid and phosphoricacid have been determined to be generally recognized as safe (see 21C.F.R. §184.1033, §182.1073). Therefore, these acids can be incorporatedinto an acceptable baby-food formulation.

In addition, an acceptable baby-food formulation can be one whoseoverall combination of organoleptic characteristics, i.e., taste,mouthfeel or texture, odor and color or appearance, is sufficientlysatisfactory that the infant will consume the formulation and thecaregiver will serve the formulation to the infant. For example, infantsare known to display an aversion to bitter tastes at a very early ageand to strong flavors such as can be present in some vegetables (Trahms,in Nutrition in Infancy and Childhood, Pipes and Trahms, Eds, Mosby, St.Louis, 1993, pp. 181-194; Kajiura et al, Developmental Psychobiol25:375-386; Rosenstein et al., Child Develop 59:1555-1568, 1988;Lowenberg, in Nutrition in Infancy and Childhood, Pipes and Trahms, Eds,Mosby, St. Louis, 1993, pp. 165-180; Brooks, The Wall St J, Dec. 4, 1996pp A1, A6; Lawless, J. Am. Diet. Assoc. 85:577-585, 1985; Ashbrook etal, J Nutrition Ed 17:5, 6, 46, 1985; Beal Pediatrics 20:448-456, 1957).Therefore, an acceptable formulation of a baby-food composition can be aformulation that is organoleptically acceptable to an infant. Forexample, the formulation can be a baby-food composition that does nothave a strong bitter taste or a strong flavor such as can be present insome vegetable preparations.

An acceptable baby-food formulation can also have a texture that can beacceptable to the baby. For example, foods that are too dry or grittyare usually unacceptable to infants. In general, acceptable baby-foodformulations will be smooth in texture. In addition, younger infantstypically prefer food that is soft and homogenous. However, anonhomogenous texture may be desired by an older infant. Because of suchpreferences, baby foods are typically produced in different forms,depending on the age of the intended consumer. For example, BEECH-NUTStage 1 products are intended to be consumed by babies from about threemonths of age. BEECH-NUT Stage 2 products, which are strained and Willpass through a 0.050″ orifice, are intended to be consumed by infantsfrom about six months of age. Accordingly, infants of at least abouteight months of age, at least about nine months of age, or older are theintended consumers of BEECH-NUT Stage 3 Junior products, which havechunky components that pass through a ⅜ inch screen.

In some embodiments, a texture acceptable to an infant can be achievedusing the whole food concept by mixing whole food preparations. Thewhole food concept involves minimal transformation of food componentsduring preparation, and can include, for example cleaning, peeling andcomminuting the food, as distinguished from more extensive processingsuch as, for example, drying or milling into a flour.

In various embodiments, the color and appearance of the formulation canbe such that the infant or the adult caregiver will not reject theformulation. Acceptable colors tend to be light rather than dark. Insome configurations, acceptable color can be achieved using the wholefood concept. In these configurations, one or more food components canbe added which confer a color to the overall mixture. In certainconfigurations, the appearance of a formulation can also be smooth andhomogenous.

In addition, a composition of various embodiments of the presentteachings is not expected to produce adverse side effects such as acidindigestion, diarrhea, allergic responses or the like.

In various embodiments, testing of a baby-food composition fororganoleptic acceptability can be readily performed by the skilledartisan using routine methods such as those described in the Examplebelow. For example, since the adult perception of bitter tastes closelyfollows that in the infant (Lawless, 1985, supra) and since foodpreferences or aversions of the adult caring for the infant are known toinfluence which foods are offered to the infant (Trahms, in Nutrition inInfancy and Childhood, Pipes and Trahms, Eds, Mosby, St. Louis, 1993,pp. 181-194; Brooks, 1985, supra), it is possible to conductacceptability testing in adults. Standard testing procedures for sensoryevaluation are known in the art including, in particular, a 9-pointhedonic scale as described in Example 9 below (see Stone and Sidel inSensory Evaluation Practices, Academic Press, Orlando, 1985, pp 58-86,227-252). Sensory characteristics that can be tested include appearanceand color, flavor, and mouthfeel and texture. Compositions scoring aboveneutral on a 9-point hedonic scale, i.e. 5.0 or greater, for at leastone, at least two, or all sensory characteristics of Appearance/Color,Flavor and Mouthfeel/Texture are considered to be acceptable withrespect to those attributes.

In various embodiments, testing for organoleptic acceptability ininfants can be conducted, for example, after obtaining informed consentfrom parents in a double-blind, randomized controlled study. Innon-limiting example, infants of ages from about 4 months to about oneyear can be fed a series of baby-food compositions prepared containing,for example, 15% egg-yolk solids, or a reference baby-food preparationknown to be accepted by the infants such as, for example, BEECH-NUT andGERBER vanilla custard pudding products or GERBER cherry vanilla puddingproduct. The adult feeding the infant can then record acceptability andtolerance including amount offered, amount consumed and amount refusedby the babies. Rating of acceptability can be performed by methodologyknown in the art (for example, Stone and Sidel, 1985, supra). Theresults can be analyzed, and compositions showing acceptance comparableto or greater than that of the reference baby food can be consideredorganoleptically suitable for use as an infant food.

In various configurations, the baby-food compositions of the presentteachings can also contain an aqueous liquid. The aqueous liquid can beadded in an amount that confers a smooth texture on the composition as awhole. Non-limiting examples of aqueous liquids include water, fruitjuices such as apple juice, grape juice, orange juice, and combinationsthereof, and vegetable juices such as carrot juice, beet juice, celeryjuice, tomato juice, and combinations thereof. In certain aspects, fruitjuices and some vegetable juices can also be a source of sugars for thecomposition.

In various embodiments, the present invention can have an acceptableMouthfeel/Texture. An acceptable Mouthfeel/Texture can be achieved invarious embodiments by addition of an acidulant or by processing thecomposition with a microcutter to produce a composition with a smoothMouthfeel/Texture. In the various embodiments containing an acidulantproduces a smooth Mouthfeel/Texture. Furthermore, the addition ofacidulant to achieve a pH of 4.6 or less permits the sterilization ofthe composition at a temperature of 212° F. rather than at 250° F.temperature required for compositions having a higher pH. This lowerretorting temperature not only can simplify the manufacturing procedure,it can also improve the color of the processed baby-food composition andreduce any heat-induced breakdown of its nutrients compared to retortingat 250° F. temperature required for compositions having a higher pH. Theacidulant thus can be present in an amount sufficient to produce apost-processing pH of 4.6 or less, such as a post-processing pH range ofbetween 4.2 and 4.3.

The acidulant of the present teachings can be any acid permitted underapplicable regulatory agency rules for use in infant foods. Inparticular phosphoric acid, citric acid, acetic acid or vinegar, andcombinations thereof are suitable for use in an acceptable baby-foodpreparation. As an alternative to or in addition to such acids, theacidulant can be comprised of a cultured food substance containinglactic acid as illustrated below in Examples 11 and 16, or one or morefruit or vegetable components that contribute acidity to the compositionas illustrated below in Examples 4, 14, 15 and 16. Examples of culturedfood substances containing lactic acid include, but are not limited toyogurt, sour cream, cottage cheese, sauerkraut and the like. Examples ofsuitable fruits or vegetables include, but are not limited to apple,apricot, banana, beets, blueberry, carrots, celery, cherry, clementine,cress, elderberry, grape, grapefruit, lemon, mango, orange, papaya,peach, pear, pineapple, plum, raspberry, rhubarb, sorrel, strawberry,sweet potato, tomato, and the like, and combinations thereof. In someconfigurations, the fruit or vegetable component can be in the form of apuree or juice. The term juice as used herein is intended to includejuices and concentrates thereof.

The acid should not make the composition organoleptically unacceptablenor should the acid deleteriously affect the infant in any way.Phosphoric acid, although acceptable in many embodiments, can sometimesbe less desirable for use in a baby-food composition of the presentteachings because it adds additional phosphorus to the diet, as do theegg-yolk solids. Thus the phosphoric acid can be in amounts such thatthe total of phosphorus in the composition as a whole does not result inconsumption by the infant exceeding the recommended daily intake forphosphorus of 500 mg. For preparations in which the composition as awhole would provide a daily intake of greater than 500 mg phosphorusbecause the egg-yolk solids or other components in addition to thephosphoric acid contribute excessive amounts of phosphorus, phosphoricacid would not be an acceptable acidulant.

In various embodiments of the present teachings, the acidulant in theform of an added acid can also improve the taste of the composition,particularly, when in combination with a fruit puree or juice in thecomposition. Thus, the tartness of the acid can tend to provide abalance with fruit components or with added sugar in the composition.

In various embodiments of the present teachings, the baby-foodcomposition does not contain an acidulant and, instead, suchcompositions are processed to have a smooth Mouthfeel/Texture using amicrocutter device. Absence of an acidulant is characterized in that thepH of baby-food compositions not containing an acidulant, can be greaterthan 4.6 and, in certain embodiments, 5.0 or greater or 6.0 or greater.Numerous microcutter devices suitable for producing a smoothMouthfeel/Texture are commercially available. Such devices include, forexample, Stephan microcutter devices such as Microcut Model Nos. MC-10,MC-12, MC-15, MCH-20, MCH-D-60A, MCH-D-90, MC-100D, MCH-D-100-II,MCH-150, MCH-D-150 and MCH-D-180 (A. Stephan u. Söhne GmbH Co. KGStephanplatz 2 D-31789 Hameln, Germany); Karl Schnell microcutterdevices such as Model Nos. FD 225/130, FD225/100, FD-6, FD2/50 and FD2/70 (Karl Schnell Inc., P.O. Box 49, New London, Wis.); CFS/Wolfkingmicrocutter devices such as the Wolfking Stainless Steel MicrocutterModel MC-225 (CFS B.V., P.O. Box 1, 5760 AA BAKEL, Beekakker 11, 5761 ENBAKEL, The Netherlands); Urschell microcutter devices such as theUrschell Comitrol Processors with micro-cut cutting head, Model Nos.MG-1300, MG-1500, MG-1700 and MG-2100 (Urschel Laboratories, Inc., 2503Calumet Avenue, Valparaiso, Ind.); Panasonic microcutter devices such asModel Nos. MX-897GM and MX-896™ Microcutter Blender with Stainless steelmicrocutter blades (Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd, HomeAppliances Group, 2-2-8 Hinode-cho, Toyonaka City, Osaka, Japan 5610821); the Hamilton Beach BlendMaster blender (234 Spring Rd.,Washington, N.C. 27889); and any similar microcutter device so long asthe device produces a composition with a smooth Mouthfeel/Texture.

The baby-food compositions of various configurations of the presentteachings can contain other ingredients that enhance the acceptabilityof the composition to an infant. For example, fruit(s) and/orvegetable(s), including purees and juices thereof that serve asacidulants as noted above can also enhance the taste or flavoracceptability of the composition. As also noted above, a juice can serveto add water as can purees to a lesser extent. Both purees and juicescan contribute sugars and additional desirable flavor components to thecomposition. Examples of suitable fruits that can be incorporated inpuree or juice form include apples, pears, bananas, pineapples,strawberries, mangos, papayas and the like. Vegetables that can beincorporated in puree form can include sweet potato, beets, carrots,celery and the like.

Additionally, filler substances such as corn starch, rice flour, wheatflour, nonfat dry milk and the like can be included in the compositionas can flavoring agents such as sugars, spices and the like. Inparticular, cinnamon can be included in the composition.

Other substances can additionally be added to a composition to improvethe flavor of the composition. For example, zinc salts such as zincsulfate or zinc chloride can be added to neutralize the sulfurous odorand taste of cooked egg yolk. In addition, the added zinc can provide anutritionally significant source of zinc. In addition to zinc, othernutritional supplements such as vitamins and/or minerals can also beincorporated into the composition.

In certain embodiments, color agents, processing agents or preservativeagents can also be added in order to improve color, taste, shelf lifeand the like.

Additional components of baby-food compositions within the scope of thepresent invention can include, for example, pasta preparations, meatpreparations such as turkey or beef, other protein-containing foods andthe like.

In various embodiments, the formulation can be based upon a whole foodconcept in which individual constituents conferring various propertieson the composition can be prepared foods rather than dried and/orrefined substances or artificially prepared substances. The whole foodscan be prepared by methods known to skilled artisans such as bycleaning, peeling, and comminuting the whole food or part thereof.Examples of whole food components of baby-food compositions are fruitjuices that can be used as a natural source of sugars and vegetablessuch as white carrots, which can be used as fillers instead of a starchsubstance (see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,723,166).

The present teachings also provide methods of making the acceptablebaby-food compositions described above. The methods involve combiningegg-yolk solids, in the form of whole egg yolk or dried egg yolk or thelike, with an aqueous liquid, and blending to produce a mixture ofsmooth consistency. The aqueous liquid can be water or any of a numberof fruit juices such as, for example, apple juice, grape juice, orangejuice, and the like or vegetable juices such as carrot juice, beetjuice, celery juice, tomato juice and the like. If dried egg yolks areused, the aqueous liquid component is in an amount sufficient todisperse adequately the egg-yolk solids in the mixture. The amount ofegg-yolk solids in the composition as a whole can be from about 5% toabout 25%, from about 6% or 7% to about 25%, from about 10% to about20%, from about 12% to about 18%, from about 12% to about 13% or about15%. The method can further comprise adding an acidulant to adjust thepH to a value of about 4.6 or less. The acidulant can be added to theinitial mixture or after blending the initial mixture. The acidulant isone that is acceptable for use in a baby-food formulation such as citricacid, phosphoric acid, vinegar or combinations thereof. As analternative to or in addition to such acids, the acidulant can becomprised of a cultured food substance containing lactic acid asillustrated below in Examples 11 and 16 or one or more fruit orvegetable components that contribute acidity to the composition asillustrated below in Examples 4, 14, 15 and 16.

The blending can be accomplished by manual stirring, a mixing machine, ablender or the like and this step can be performed before or after theaddition of any additional ingredients. Such blending mixes theingredients and ultimately produces a composition of smooth consistency.

Where additional ingredients are added to the composition such as a zincsalt, a fruit or vegetable puree or juice, a spice or a fillersubstance, such additions can be made at the time the egg-yolk solidsand aqueous liquid are combined or at any appropriate time thereafter.

In certain configurations, the blended egg-yolk mixture can be treatedto coagulate the protein in the egg-yolk mixture. Coagulation can beaccomplished by heating the mixture in a heating device such as an oven,at a temperature of about 170° F. or greater, or at least 175° F.Complete coagulation of the egg protein can be ensured by heating at180° F. to 190° F. for 5 minutes. Alternative methods can also be usedto perform the coagulating, such as, for example, microwaving themixture.

In some embodiments, coagulated protein can be dispersed by homogenizingthe coagulated mixture to a smooth consistency. Such homogenizing can bedone, for example by using a blender. A homogenized mixture can beplaced in one or more containers, followed by sealing and heating thecontainers under conditions suitable for producing a shelf-stablecomposition. Such conditions can be readily determined by the skilledartisan and typically involve retorting for about 30 minutes at either212° F., for compositions having a pH of 4.6 or lower, or at 250° F. forcompositions having a pH greater than 4.6.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICATION

The baby-food compositions of the present invention have application foruse as semi-solid preparations for infants which can enhance an infant'scognitive function. The compositions provide nutritionally significantamounts of DHA in the infant's diet, which can be beneficial forcognitive development in the infant. Because the compositions contain asignificant amount of egg-yolk solids, they provide a food naturallyrich in protein, vitamins and minerals, as well as containing somepolyunsaturated fatty acids. When the egg-yolk solids derive from hen'seggs obtained from chickens fed diets high in DHA or DHA precursors,infants fed on the compositions are believed to develop cognitiveability that is at least as good as, and can potentially surpass,cognitive ability of breast-fed infants.

The following examples illustrate certain embodiments of the presentapplication. Other embodiments within the scope of the claims hereinwill be apparent to one skilled in the art from consideration of thespecification and the examples that follow or from practice of theinvention as disclosed herein.

The examples, while illustrating embodiments of the present teachings,are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. Moreover,recitation of multiple embodiments having stated features is notintended to exclude other embodiments having additional features, orother embodiments incorporating different combinations of the statedfeatures. Each example is provided for illustrative purposes of how tomake and use a compositions or method of the present teachings and,unless explicitly stated otherwise (e.g., through presentation in thepast tense), is not intended to be a representation that a givenembodiment has, or has not, been made or tested.

EXAMPLE 1

This example illustrates commercial baby-food compositions containingless than 5% or more than 25% egg-yolk solids.

The compositions of old and current products were obtained from thefollowing publications: BEECH-NUT Ingredient Listings from 1977-1985;GERBER Ingredients Publ. 55-8 Rev. 477 and Publ. 55-8 Rev. 785 foringredients and Publ. 55-85 Rev. 185, Publ. 55-90 Rev. 185, Publ. 55-90Rev. 681 for nutrient values per 100 grams; and BEECH-NUT NutritiveValues & Ingredient Listing, Publ. 1977, Publ. 10/1983.

Calculations below are based upon an egg yolk containing about 46% totalsolids, i.e., about 8 grams total egg-yolk solids for a typical 17 gramegg yolk and fat constituting approximately 50 to 55% of total eggsolids or about 4 grams of fat per average egg yolk.

Two egg-yolk products containing high amounts of egg yolk werecommercially available in the 1970's but are no longer marketed. Therewere the BEECH-NUT and GERBER “Egg Yolks” products.

The BEECH-NUT “Egg Yolks” product contained egg yolks and water forproper consistency and provided, per 100 grams, 194 calories, 9.6 gramsof protein, 18.5 grams of fat and 29.9 grams of total egg-yolk solids.This product contained 65 grams egg yolk per 100 g.

The GERBER “Egg Yolks” product contained egg yolks and water necessaryfor preparation and provided, per 100 grams, 199 calories, 10.2 grams ofprotein, 17.4 grams of fat and 29.0 grams of total solids, as egg-yolksolids. It is believed that the BEECH-NUT and GERBER Egg Yolk productsare no longer marketed because the compositions were organolepticallyunacceptable to babies and as a result were not purchased by the adultcaregivers.

BEECH-NUT “Cereal Egg Yolks & Bacon” product contained water, farina,smoked bacon, dried egg yolks, modified cornstarch, nonfat dry milk, oatflour and smoked yeast. This product provided, per 100 grams, 86calories, 2.3 grams of protein, 5.5 grams of fat, and 15.3 grams oftotal solids. The content of egg yolk was 3.5% dried egg yolk whichcontributed 3.33 grams of egg-yolk solids per 100 grams. GERBER “CerealEgg Yolk Bacon Dinner” contained water, egg-yolk solids, bacon, nonfatdry milk, rice flour, wheat flour, corn flour and sugar. The productprovided, per 100 grams, 66 calories, 2.4 grams of protein, 2.8 grams offat and 13.3 grams of total solids. The amount of egg-yolk solidspresent was estimated to be about 3 grams of egg-yolk solids per 100grams and, in any case, less than 5 grams of egg-yolk solids per 100grams. This calculation is based upon the presumption that the non-eggingredients including the bacon contribute in part to the fat content ofthe composition.

GERBER “Cereal & Egg Yolk” contained water necessary for preparation,nonfat milk, egg yolk, wheat flour, corn flour, modified corn starch,sugar and iodized salt.

This product provided, per 100 grams, 55 calories, 2.3 grams of protein,1.7 grams of fat and 11.8 grams of total solids. The total fat presentis 1.7 grams per 100 grams which would be contributed by less than 4grams of egg-yolk solids per 100 grams.

GERBER and BEECH-NUT desserts contain egg yolks as an ingredient and atotal of 1 gram of fat per 100 grams or less, which indicates less than2 grams of egg-yolk solids per 100 grams.

EXAMPLE 2

This example illustrates the analytical testing of commercial eggsobtained from hens fed diets enriched with DHA or DHA precursors.

Organic eggs from hens fed a DHA-enriching diet were obtained from TheCountry Hen, Hubbardstown, Mass. 01452 and from Pilgrim's PrideCorporation, Pittsburg, Tex. 73686. For comparative purposes, commercialdried egg yolks from hens not receiving DHA-enriching diet were alsoanalyzed.

Whole eggs were used for convenience and because egg white does notinterfere with analytical testing for fatty acids. Fatty acids arepresent almost exclusively in the yolk and the egg whites contain onlynegligible amounts of fat.

Standard AOAC analytical methods were used to quantitatively determinethe fatty acid content in the whole eggs and in the dried egg-yolkcontrol. (see Shepard, Lipid Manual, Methodology Appropriate for FattyAcid-Cholesterol Analysis, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Div. ofNutrition, Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, 200 “C” St. SW,Washington, D.C. 20204, September, 1989; Official Methods of Analysis ofthe AOAC, (1995) 16^(th) Ed., Methods 983.23 locator #45.4.02, 969.33Locator #41.1.28, 994.15 Locator #41.1.35A, and 996.01; Ratnayaka, J.AOAC International 78: 783-802, 1995). Briefly the AOAC method used wasas follows:

Lipids were extracted and then saponified using alcoholic sodiumhydroxide. The fatty acids were then esterified in methanol, with borontrifluoride as catalyst, taken up in heptane and injected on a gaschromatograph with a flame ionization detector. The percentages ofindividual fatty acid methyl esters were determined from a set ofstandards containing known concentrations of prepared methyl esters ofselected fatty acids. The concentration of each fatty acid methyl esterwas calculated as either equivalent triglyceride or fatty acid. Totalfatty acids were calculated as the sum of all fatty acids expressed astriglycerides and the value reported as a percentage, i.e., grams per100 grams of sample. Individual fatty acids were expressed as apercentage of total fatty acids. The analysis was based upon a 2-gramsample and the lowest confidence level for total fatty acids was 0.1%whereas that for individual fatty acids was 0.004%. Results are shown inTable 1.

TABLE 1 Dried Egg Country Hen Pilgrim's Pride Yolk Eggs* eggs* EdibleWeight (g) 51.1 58.4 Fatty acids (g/100 g) 49.44 7.3 9.4 Fatty acids(g/egg) 4.4 5.5 DHA (mg/egg) 89.1 112.2 Fatty Acid (% of total fattyacids) myristic (C_(14:0)) 0.38 0.38 0.38 pentadecanoic (C_(15:0)) ‡3.12 ‡ palmitic (C_(16:0)) 26.04 23.41 21.40 margaric (C_(17:0)) 0.230.34 0.29 stearic (C_(18:0)) 9.24 9.48 8.53 palmitoleic (C_(16:1ω7))2.68 1.79 1.50 margaroleic (C_(17:1 ω 9)) 0.17 ‡ ‡ elaidic (C_(18:1 ω9))0.32 ‡ ‡ oleic (C_(18:1 ω9)) 40.61 30.0 29.63 vaccenic (C_(18:1 ω7))1.51 1.81 1.76 eicosanoic (C_(20:1 ω9)) 0.24 0.21 0.20 nervonic(C_(24:1ω9)) ‡ ‡ ‡ eicosadienoic (C_(20:2 ω?)) 0.16 0.26 0.33 linoleic(C_(18:2ω6)) 12.68 22.84 27.79 gamma linolenic (C_(18:3 ω6)) 0.10 ‡ ‡homo-gamma-lin (C_(20:3 ω6)) 0.22 0.28 0.18 arachidonic (C_(20:4 ω6))1.76 1.28 1.42 alpha-linolenic (C_(18:3 ω3)) 0.25 1.66 2.37eicosapentaenoic (C_(20:5 ω3)) ‡ ‡ 0.17 docosapentaenoic (C_(22:5 ω3)) ‡0.26 0.20 docosahexaenoic (C_(22:6 ω3)) 0.40 2.05 2.04 trans isomers(C_(18:2)) 0.14 ‡ ‡ Unknown 2.22 2.75 1.22 *Values are expressed asmeans (n = 16 for Country Hen eggs and n = 12 for Pilgrim's Pride eggs)‡ At or below the detection limit of 0.10%

As can be seen in Table 1, eggs from hens fed a DHA-enriching diet hadsubstantially higher levels of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) than dried eggyolk from hens not fed a DHA-enriching diet.

EXAMPLE 3

This example illustrates the testing for the amount of water and acidneeded in an egg yolk composition suitable for use in a baby foodcomposition.

Six sample compositions were prepared by dispersing varying amounts ofdried egg yolk in water at room temperature. A preliminary test of acidrequirements was done by adding white vinegar standardized to 5% acidityto sample 7927E to 20% total volume. The samples were placed in aboiling/simmering water bath for about 20 minutes. The samples withgreater amounts of dried egg yolk looked like soufflé after cooking. Thesamples were then blended with a hand blender into a smooth mixture andtasted. The results are shown in Table 2.

TABLE 2 Dried Total Sample Egg yolk (g) weight (g) Observations HK7927A15.2 99.8 before cooking, very thin; after cooking, very much freefluid. HK7927B 20.4 101.7 before cooking, very thin; after cooking, veryloose. HK7927C 24.4 100.0 before cooking, very thin; after cooking, softform. HK7927D 30.5 99.6 before cooking, thicker than A, B, or C; aftercooking, poor taste, unattractive, no specific dislike, except generallydistasteful; puffy, texture soft and wet enough to blend. HK7927E 34.8 +102.9 before cooking, pretty thick; vinegar after cooking, puffy, somevinegar taste but otherwise a nice clean taste; a bit thin afterstirring, not overly viscous. HK7927F 34.9 99.4 before cooking, prettythick; after cooking, unpleasant taste, nothing specific exceptgenerally offensive egg taste; very dry texture, unusable preparation.

As can be seen from the table, lowering the pH yielded a better physicaland organoleptic result. The two best samples, HK7927D and HK7927E, werefurther evaluated as described below.

EXAMPLE 4

This example illustrates the effects of combining the egg-yolkpreparations of Example 3 with a fruit or vegetable puree in the absenceor presence of added acid.

Sample HK7927E from Example 3 was mixed with 65 g of sweet potato pureeto test a “low acid” food approach.

The HK7927E sample mixed with applesauce was a much smoother productwith less egg taste. The mixture of HK7927D with sweet potato puree didnot taste as appealing. These results suggest that adding acid in theform of a fruit puree yields a smoother and better tasting composition.

EXAMPLE 5

This Example illustrates the effects of adding varying quantities ofvinegar to egg-yolk preparations on pH and physical and organolepticqualities of the composition.

Twenty grams of dried egg yolk were dispersed in 80 g of watercontaining 0 to 12.2 grams of white vinegar standardized to 5% acidity.The dispersions were then placed in sealed glass jars in aboiling/simmering water bath for 20 minutes. After cooling, the taste,tartness, texture and mouthfeel were evaluated. The preparations werethen filtered through filter paper to get a clearer fluid for pHmeasurement. The pH was measured with a portable pH meter. The pH valuesin this example only were corrected for measurement bias using readingsobtained from pH 7.01 and pH 4.01 standards so that reported valuesshould be considered indicative rather than precisely accurate. The pHand sensory observations are shown in Table 3.

TABLE 3 Sample Vinegar (g) pH Observations HK7928A 0.0 6.26 Loosescrambled eggs; lots of clear filtrate; little mealy, dry, gritty; noacidity. HK7928B 3.4 4.85 Creamier than 7928A; slight mealy mouthfeels;no acidity; mildest taste. HK7928C 6.7 4.40 Very creamy; smooth; slightvinegary but good taste. HK7928D 9.1 4.30 Not as creamy, strong vinegartaste, too much. HK7928E 12.2 4.17 Too strong a vinegar taste, verythin, creamy.

It was concluded that HK7928C was the best of the compositions in thisexample because it had a smooth, creamy mouthfeel, an acceptable tasteand a pH less than 4.6. These results suggested that the optimal acidcontent when using acetic acid at 5% acidity was 6.7 g per 20 g of driedegg yolk. This calculates to be 1.675 grams of 100% acetic acid per 100g dried egg yolk, or 28 mEq. This same amount of acid calculated in mEqfor citric acid monohydrate, would be about 2 grams citric acidmonohydrate per 100 g dried egg yolk.

EXAMPLE 6

This Example illustrates the use of fruit puree to increase the amountof egg yolk that can be incorporated into the food composition and todecrease the amount of added water.

In order to obtain a composition with a higher percentage of egg yolk,398.2 g of dried egg yolk, 129.5 g of vinegar and 601.1 g of applesaucewere combined (dried egg yolk=35.3% of the mixture). The resultantmixture was, however, too thick to get any dispersion of the dried eggyolk into the fluid ingredients. Water was, therefore, added in gradedportions until 550 g were added (dried egg yolk=23.7% of the mixture).The ingredients could then be blended into a homogeneous mixture. Whenthis was cooked at 175° F. to 180° F. for about 20 minutes, the mixturebecame very thick.

Samples of this mixture were transferred to glass jars and cooked in aboiling/simmering water bath for 30 minutes. The resulting food, codedHK7001A, was a very thick and dry; it was not a puree; and it was judgedto be less desirable than formulations in examples 3-5 using lesseramounts of egg-yolk solids.

A 500 g portion of the mixture was combined with an additional 100 g ofapplesauce (dried egg yolk=19.8% of the mixture), blended forhomogeneity and samples placed in glass jars and cooked in aboiling/simmering water bath for 30 minutes. The resulting food, codedHK7001B, was still thick and pasty, but was showing a more appealingflavor and texture. Thus, in certain embodiments, in order to use theaddition of fruit to achieve a more appealing flavor, the egg-yolksolids can comprise 20% or less of the mixture.

Examples 3-6 show that an acceptable approach for preparing acomposition containing egg yolk requires having enough water and acid inthe initial mixture to disperse the dried egg yolks upon blending;blending the mixture to get a smooth dispersion with no lumps;coagulating the egg yolk by cooking the acidified egg-yolk dispersion ata temperature greater than 170° F. (perhaps greater than 175° F.); andblending the heated dispersion containing the coagulated egg yolk tomake a smooth dispersion prior to the final sterilization. Optionally,fruit can be added to improve the flavor.

EXAMPLE 7

This example illustrates a two-phase process for preparing a compositioncontaining 13% dried egg yolks (equivalent 27% whole egg yolks) andfruit.

Using egg yolks containing 12 mg DHA per gram egg-yolk solids, ababy-food preparation containing about 13% dried egg yolk in a 113-gram(4-ounce) jar of a baby-food preparation will provide 150 mg of DHA in100 grams of baby food. The following process was, therefore, designedto prepare a baby-food composition containing 13% dried egg yolk.

This process involved mixing about 35% dried egg yolks with citric acidmonohydrate and then heating the mixture to greater than 175° F. (80°C.) to denature, i.e. coagulate, the egg-yolk protein (Phase I). Thisphase I composition was then mixed with various fruit purees and theresulting organoleptic characteristics assessed.

For the first phase, a master batch of the Phase I Egg-Yolk Preparationwas prepared with 400 g of dried egg yolks, 8 g of citric acid and 730 gof water. The water was added to a large stainless steel bowl. Thecitric acid was dissolved in the water and then the dried egg yolks wereadded. The larger lumps of egg were broken up with a spoon and then themixture was made into a smooth homogeneous dispersion with a BRAUNMULTIMIXER blender. The dried egg-yolk level was 35.15% of the Phase IEgg-Yolk Preparation.

The bowl was then placed atop a pot with boiling water as a doubleboiler. The temperature of the egg-yolk dispersion was brought to 175°F. to 185° F. The dispersion became thick with this heating, so it wasblended several times to disperse the coagulated egg. The egg in contactwith the hot surface of the bowl was more prone to coagulate due to thehigher local temperature.

The dispersion lost about 58 g of water due to evaporation, which wasreplaced after the dispersion was removed from the heat and then blendedinto the dispersion. Afterwards, one sample was placed in a glass jar,sealed and cooked in a boiling water bath for 30 minutes. The remainingPhase I dispersion was refrigerated and held for blending in Phase II.

For Phase II, BEECH-NUT baby fruit puree heated to 150° F., 315 g, wasblended with 185 g of the Phase I Egg-Yolk Preparation, to yield 13.0%dried egg yolk in the mixtures. Samples were placed in glass jars,sealed and heated in a boiling/simmering bath for 30 to 35 minutes. Thethree samples produced as shown in Table 4:

TABLE 4 BEECH-NUT Sample pH Fruit Puree Source Product Code HK7005A 4.19BEECH-NUT Stage 3 Pears 6806C1103 HK7005B 4.15 BEECH-NUT Stage 2 Peaches7611C1102 & Bananas HK7005C 4.02 BEECH-NUT Stage 2 Pears & 7616E1522/24Raspberries

Three jars of each sample were submitted for taste testing. As shown inTable 5, the preparations were reported to taste sour and to be not verypalatable.

TABLE 5 Flavor Evaluation Samples (5 evaluators) HK7005A 3 - not good1 - okay 1 - “funny taste” HK7005B 4 - okay 1 - not good HK7005C 4 - notgood 1 - okay

EXAMPLE 7

This example illustrates the preparation of a low-acid egg-yolkcomposition using sweet potato puree.

The composition in this example (HK7026) was prepared using thefollowing components in the percentages given as volume percent: sweetpotato puree, 55% (BEECH-NUT Stage 3 Sweet Potatoes, 7313B0755); driedegg yolks, 15%; heavy cream, 5% (40% fat; ingredients milk and cream);ground cinnamon, 0.1%; and water, 24.9% (warm, about 120 degrees). Thewater, heavy cream, warmed sweet potato puree, and cinnamon werecombined in a blender bowl and the dried egg yolk was added. The mixturewas blended and the egg yolk was easily dispersed in one minute.

The mixture was then transferred to a double boiler and heated to 180°F. with stirring. The coagulated material was then blended to produce afine dispersion which was readily achieved. The puree was transferred tosmall Mason jars and retorted for 60 minutes at 15 psig using a homepressure cooker.

The resultant puree had a dried-out, curdled appearance suggesting thatit may have lost some liquid in the pressure cooking process. It ispossible that a lower level of heavy cream such as 2.5% could diminishthe apparent drying out of the puree. The combination of heating in thehome pressure cooker and air entrapment in the purees resulted intextures that were undesirable in appearance. The pH after processingwas 5.41.

The process was replicated in a pilot plant, however, again the productappeared curdled and undesirable in appearance in the jar. Because inprevious work, adding zinc salt reduced the sulfurous odor and taste ofcooked egg yolk, zinc chloride was added to the composition prepared inthe pilot plant. As a result the pilot plant preparation had no egg-liketaste or smell.

EXAMPLE 8

This example illustrates the effects of adding the acidulant, phosphoricacid, on organoleptic properties of the composition.

Four test kitchen samples were prepared containing 15% dried egg yolks,6% medium grain rice flour and 0.011% zinc chloride. The effect ofstep-wise addition of phosphoric acid acidulant on product appearanceand taste was then assessed. The ingredients were combined with waterand blended to a smooth consistency, the pH was adjusted with phosphoricacid to between 6.15 and 4.15 and the mixture heated to 190° F. tocoagulate the egg protein. The mixture was then blended again to asmooth consistency and retorted for 50 min at 250° F. for preparationshaving a pH greater than 4.6 and at 212° F. for preparations having a pHless than 4.6. The samples were tested for titratable acidity (postprocessing), pH (before and after processing) and for color using aHunterlab colorimeter. The Hunterlab colorimeter quantifies reflectanceon an L, a, and b coordinate system. The L coordinate axis measuresluminosity on a scale increasing from darkness-to-lightness; the a axismeasures increasing values on a continuum from green to red; and the baxis measures increasing values on a continuum from blue to yellow. Theresults are shown in Table 6.

TABLE 6 TK141A TK141B TK141C TK141D Dried Egg Yolk, 15.00 15.00 15.0015.00 % Rice Flour, % 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 Acid added None phosphoricphosphoric Phosphoric Acid-added % 0.00 0.12 0.19 0.38 Titratableacidity, 0.082 0.250 0.329 0.534 % Unprocessed pH 6.15 5.10 4.70 4.15Processed pH 5.93 5.13 4.75 4.25 Retort 250 250 250 212 temperature, °F. Hunterlab “L” 63.79 66.78 68.82 78.71 Hunterlab “a” 3.79 5.06 4.590.28 Hunterlab “b” 23.10 24.76 24.39 23.35

Sample TK141D had the lightest color (highest Hunterlab L value),probably because of the lower retorting temperature of 212° F.

Samples TK141B, TK141C and TK141D were found to have a smoother texturethan sample TK141A. The samples were then tested for organolepticacceptability. The observations are summarized below:

Sensory Evaluation

TK141A

-   -   Appearance in the jar (unopened): heavily curdled, water        separation, starch separated, hard plug, dark, and starch gel        surrounds plug    -   Appearance on opening: slimy look on top, plug shrunken away        from glass    -   Odor/smell upon opening: slight cooked egg odor    -   Appearance on mixing: looks terrible, starch glistening, darkish    -   Mouthfeel: slightly gritty (better than it looked but        well-stirred)    -   Taste: bland, slight cooked egg taste

TK141B

-   -   Appearance in the jar (unopened): finer curd, softer plug,        sloppy starch glop at bottom, slightly lighter    -   Appearance on opening: curdled top, grainy surface    -   Odor/smell upon opening: cooked egg odor    -   Appearance on mixing: very curdled and grainy, not attractive,        lighter color than A    -   Mouthfeel: grainy, particles softer than A    -   Taste: bland, cooked egg taste

TK141C

-   -   Appearance in the jar (unopened): much finer curd, yellow, less        dark, and some starch separation, water separation, soft plug    -   Appearance on opening: nice yellow color, egg salad textural        appearance, flows like baby food, soft plug    -   Odor/smell upon opening: slight cooked egg odor    -   Appearance on mixing: grainy, starch gel pieces    -   Mouthfeel: soft, smooth despite visual appearance of lumps    -   Taste: slightly tart, not bad

TK141D

-   -   Appearance in the jar (unopened): light yellow (great color),        looks like some air bubbles with no obvious curd, no water or        starch separation    -   Appearance on opening: skin on top, creamy color (more        white/less yellow)    -   Odor/smell upon opening: very slight cooked egg odor    -   Appearance on mixing: viscous, very thick, grainy, not bad    -   Mouthfeel: very smooth    -   Taste: moderately tart, not bad

It was concluded from this experiment that acidification improvesmouthfeel and appearance, in particular, the color of the composition.Reducing the pH to less than pH 4.6 permitted retorting at 212° F. inthe sterilization process and this is apparently why the color of TK141Dwas much lighter than the other preparations as indicated by the higherHunterlab L value.

EXAMPLE 9

The following example illustrates the comparison of three food acidacidulants, phosphoric acid, citric acid and vinegar, which aregenerally recognized as safe for use in baby-food preparations by theU.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Except for the acidulant, compositions were prepared according to theformulations in Example 8 to contain 15% dried egg yolks, 6% mediumgrain rice flour and 0.011% zinc chloride. The acidulants used were 85%phosphoric acid, citric acid monohydrate or vinegar standardized to 5%acidity. The pH of the compositions was adjusted to approximately pH4.15. The ingredients were combined with water and blended to a smoothconsistency, the pH was adjusted to pH 4.15 to 4.20 with the appropriateacid and the mixture was heated to 180° F. for 5 minutes to coagulatethe egg protein. The mixtures were then blended again to a smoothconsistency and retorted at 212° F. for 50 minutes.

Experimental samples were evaluated for Flavor and Mouthfeel/Texture ona standard nine-point hedonic scale. The scale is as follows:

Score/rating Std. Hedonic Scale 9 I like extremely 8 I like very much 7I like moderately 6 I like slightly 5 I neither like nor dislike 4 Idislike slightly 3 I dislike moderately 2 I dislike very much 1 Idislike extremely

The results are shown in Table 7.

TABLE 7 TK141D TK159A TK159B TK159C Dried Egg Yolk, % 15.00 15.00 15.0015.00 Rice Flour, % 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 Acid Added phosphoric phosphoriccitric vinegar Acid added, % 0.38 0.37 0.39 10.64 Unprocessed pH 4.154.16 4.15 4.17 Processed pH 4.25 4.28 4.25 4.27 Retort temperature, 212212 212 212 ° F. Hunterlab “L” 78.71 74.75 74.06 76.55 Hunterlab “a”0.28 1.08 1.10 0.81 Hunterlab “b” 23.35 23.87 25.16 23.47 Flavor 2.052.89 2.44 1.22 (nine-point scale) Mouthfeel/Texture 3.84 5.66 6.67 6.33(nine-point scale)

As shown in the table, TK159C, made with white vinegar, had the worsttaste. Phosphoric acid and citric acid were roughly similar on taste andcitric acid may be slightly better for mouthfeel. Samples made with allthree acids, which were retorted at 212° F., had good light yellowcolors.

Although sample TK159A containing phosphoric acid was most acceptable ontaste, in certain embodiments citric acid can be used as the acidulantrather than phosphoric acid. TK141D contained 0.38% phosphoric acid andTK159A contained 0.37% phosphoric acid. Since 85% phosphoric acidcontains about 26% phosphorus, these two samples would contain about 112milligrams of added phosphorus in a four-ounce jar (0.38%=380 mg %; 380mg/100 g×113 g×0.26% P=112 mg P/jar). Egg yolks already contain about100 milligrams of phosphorus per medium egg yolk, which weighs 17 g. A15% dried egg-yolk composition contains the equivalent of 30% liquid eggyolk, or 33.9 g (two egg yolks) per four-ounce (113 gram) jar, whichsupply 200 mg of phosphorus just from the two egg yolks. The recommendeddaily intake (RDI) for phosphorus for the infant is 500 mg, so a foodacidified with phosphoric acid can provide 60% of the recommended dailyintake (“RDI”) of phosphorus. Food acidified with any other acid canstill provide 40% of the phosphorus RDI, derived from the egg yolkalone.

EXAMPLE 10

This example illustrates the effect of retort temperature and sugarcontent on the organoleptic properties of compositions.

Except for the acidulant used, compositions were prepared according tothe formulations in Example 8 to contain 15% dried egg yolks, 6% mediumgrain rice flour and 0.011% zinc chloride. Where required, citric acidwas used to adjust to pH and table sugar was added at 9%. Theingredients were combined with water and blended to a smoothconsistency, the pH was adjusted with citric acid monohydrate to pH 4.15to 4.20 and the mixture was heated to 180° F. for 5 minutes to coagulatethe egg protein, blended again to a smooth consistency and retorted for50 minutes at either 250° F. or 212° F. In order to assess the effect oftemperature on the compositions, TK162B and TK159B, which were otherwiseequivalent preparations, were retorted at 250° F., and 212° F.respectively. Because the pH of the composition determines the requiredretort temperature, i.e., compositions having a pH greater 4.6 need tobe retorted at 250° F. and compositions having a pH of 4.6 or less needonly to be retorted at 212° F., reference composition TK141A having pHof about 6 was compared to composition TK162B in order to compare thecombined effects of added acid and retort temperature on organolepticcharacteristics of the compositions. Finally, composition TK162C wasprepared in the same manner as TK159B except that 9% sugar was added totest the effect on organoleptic characteristics of the composition. Theresults are shown in Table 8.

TABLE 8 TK141A TK162B TK159B TK162C Dried Egg Yolk, 15.00 15.00 15.0015.00 % Rice Flour, % 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 Sugar, % none none none 9.00Acid added, % none citric (0.38) citric (0.39) citric (0.38) UnprocessedpH 6.15 4.15 4.15 4.15 Processed pH 5.93 4.25 4.25 4.25 Retort 250 250212 212 temperature, ° F. Hunterlab “L” 63.79 68.65 74.06 73.11Hunterlab “a” 3.79 4.87 1.10 1.71 Hunterlab “b” 23.10 24.80 25.16 25.32Flavor 3.84 1.95 2.44 4.86 (nine-point scale) Mouthfeel/ 4.53 4.00 6.676.64 Texture nine-point scale)

The results from these compositions show that acidifying the compositiondetracts from flavor by introducing a strong tartness but enhances colorretention, even when the acidified sample is retorted at 250° F.Retorting at a lower temperature is most favorable for maintaining alight color, i.e., higher Hunterlab “L” values. Processing at a lowertemperature also favors a better mouthfeel and texture. The experimentabove further shows that flavor can be improved by adding sugar tobalance the added acid. The 9% sugar level in this model system yieldeda relatively neutral flavor score of 4.86.

EXAMPLE 11

This example illustrates baby-food compositions containing 15% dried eggyolk, citric acid monohydrate as acidulant, zinc chloride and variousfruit purees or juices as sugar sources.

The compositions in this example were prepared essentially as describedabove in examples 3-10 which was, briefly, as follows. All ingredientsexcept the citric acid were combined and blended together. The pH wasthen determined and adjusted to pH 4.25 or less with citric acid. Themixture was then transferred to a double boiler and heated to 170° F. to180° F. to coagulate the egg protein. The hot mixture was then blendedagain until smooth and filled at 150° F. into glass jars which werecapped and processed for 50 to 55 minutes at the indicated temperature.The compositions were as shown in Table 9.

TABLE 9 Ingredient TK152 TK153A TK153B TK153C TK154B TK154C TK155 DriedEgg Yolk 15.00 15.00 15.00 15.00 15.00 15.00 15.00 Apple Puree — 55.0058.00 55.00 — — 25.00 Pear Puree — — — — 57.00 59.00 — Sweet Potato — —— — — — 25.00 puree Yogurt 25.00 — — — — — 15.00 Grape jc. Conc. 10.00 —— — 5.00 3.00 — Apple jc. Conc. — 7.00 7.00 7.00 — — 10.00 Rice flour,3.00 3.00 — 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 med. Grain Cinnamon — — — 0.045 — — —Zinc chloride 0.011 0.011 0.011 0.011 0.011 0.011 0.011 Citric acid to:pH 4.23 pH 4.23 pH 4.26 pH 4.26 pH 4.24 pH 4.23 pH 4.25 Water q.s. 100q.s. 100 q.s. 100 q.s. 100 q.s. 100 q.s. 100 q.s. 100 Retort temp. ° F.250° F. 212° F. 212° F. 212° F. 212° F. 212° F. 212° F. Titratable —0.414 0.437 0.560 0.515 0.469 0.810 acid, % Total sugars, % — 7.7 8.97.3 5.9 4.8 7.7

Composition TK153C was judged the best on flavor, which is probably dueto the additional cinnamon flavor notes which effectively neutralizedthe cooked egg-yolk flavors.

EXAMPLE 12

This example illustrates further testing of composition TK153C fororganoleptic acceptability.

TK153C was prepared as described in Example 11 and coded as TK163 fororganoleptic analysis by a trained panel of 22 panelists using anine-point hedonic scale as described in Example 9. TK163 was evaluatedfor Appearance/Color, Flavor and Mouthfeel/Texture on a nine-point scalehedonic scale. The results are shown in Table 10 below.

TABLE 10 Attribute Mean Value Appearance/Color 5.95 Flavor 5.95Mouthfeel/Texture 6.23

Since the average hedonic score was above neutral for each of the threetested organoleptic characteristics, sample TK163 was deemed to be anorganoleptically acceptable baby-food preparation containing 15% driedegg yolk.

EXAMPLE 13

This example illustrates a testing procedure that could be used todetermine the organoleptic acceptability of baby-food composition toinfants in certain embodiments of the present teachings.

Informed consent would be obtained from the parents of the infantsinvolved in the study. Testing would be in a double-blind, randomizedcontrolled study. Approximately 10 full-term infants of ages from about4 months to about one year would be fed a series of baby-foodcomposition including a composition containing egg yolk and a controlstandard baby-food composition known to be accepted by infants. Thiscontrol composition could serve as a, reference for organolepticacceptability. The baby-food compositions could be prepared, forexample, by the methods identified in Examples 3-12 above.

General data on the infants would be obtained and recorded such as ageand weight. In addition, background information would be obtained fromthe parent which would generally identify food preferences or aversionsas well as eating habits of the family of the test infant. Subjectswould be randomly assigned to one of the two feeding groups. The testwould involve feeding of the infant by the adult parent. The parentwould record the acceptability and tolerance of the infant toward thebaby food including amount offered, amount consumed and amount refusedby the babies. All digestive problems, such as vomiting, spitting up,and diarrhea would be noted. Acceptability would be scored by themothers in a questionnaire which uses a nine-point hedonic scale asillustrated in Example 9 above (see also Stone and Sidel, SensoryEvaluation Practices, Academic Press, Inc., Orlando, 1985, pp. 58-86).The mothers would indicate acceptance or aversion based on the responsesof the infants to the food. The results would then be analyzed andegg-yolk compositions showing acceptance comparable to or greater thanthat of standard baby food would be considered suitable for use as aninfant food.

EXAMPLE 14

This example illustrates an egg yolk containing composition of peaches,oatmeal and cinnamon in which the acidulant is comprised of an acidicfruit component of peach puree and white grape juice along with ascorbicacid.

This study, identified as PP6300, was a pilot plant scale up of anearlier Test Kitchen sample, TK341C. TK341C was evaluated by a panel offive (5) tasters and found to have an acceptable taste.

Single-strength peach puree, 82.5 lb., was added to a kettle equippedwith a swept-surface heating capability. The puree was heated to atemperature of 160° F. to 170° F. using the hot water jacket. Fifty-five(55) pounds of this hot peach puree were weighed and transferred to asecond kettle.

Ferrous sulfate heptahydrate, 0.03 lb. (13.62 g), and citric acid, 0.02lb. (9.08 grams), were dissolved in a portion of the batch water to forma complex of ferrous iron and citric acid. Seven pounds of white grapejuice concentrate, 6.67 lb. of dried egg-yolk powder, 2.0 lb. of oatflakes, 0.04 lb. of ascorbic acid, 0.45 lb. of ground cinnamon, 0.02 lb.(9.08 g) of vitamin premix and 0.011 lb. (5.0 g) of zinc sulfate wereadded to 18.07 lb. of batch water in the second kettle containing 55pounds of peach puree and made into a slurry with the hot peach puree.The ferrous sulfate-citric acid solution was added and mixing wascontinued.

The slurry was passed through a Stephan Microcutter, Model No. MC-12,equipped with a blank ring and transferred to a Koven kettle. Afteradditional mixing, the pH was measured and found to be pH 4.04. Thepeach puree and white grape juice concentrate contributed sufficientacidity so that addition of a specific acidulant was unnecessary. Theslurry was heated to a temperature of 180° F. to 190° F. by steaminjection, adding about 10 lb. of water to the batch via condensation.The slurry was passed twice through a Stephan Microcutter, Model No.MC-12, equipped with a 0.05-0.10 mm ring and strained through a 0.033″screen.

The product was filled into 113-gram glass jars at a temperature of 150°F. The jars were then capped and thermally processed in a retort at 212°F. for 30 minutes to achieve pasteurization in accordance with 21 C.F.R.§114 et seq. “Acidified Foods.” The pH of PP6300 on the day afterprocessing was 4.34.

EXAMPLE 15

This example illustrates pilot plant production of an egg yolkcontaining chicken lasagna composition (PP6327) in which the acidulantis comprised of tomato puree.

Water was heated in an open kettle to 200° F. and 11.25 lb. of mafaldapasta was blanched therein for 10 minutes to achieve hydration. Theblanched pasta was then drained and rinsed with cold water. The weightof the blanched pasta was 26.65 lb.

Forty and one-quarter lb. of frozen carrot pieces were placed in aFitzpatrick Comminutor, Model No. D, at medium speed and an exittemperature of 180° F. to 200° F. (190° F. target). Approximately 6 lb.of water were added through steam injection, resulting in a total pureeweight of 47 lb. The spinning knives in the Comminutor and the injectedsteam comminuted the carrots into a puree that passes through a 3/16″ or¼″ screen.

The slurry was passed through a Stephan Microcutter, Model No. MC-12,equipped with a blank ring and transferred to a Koven kettle. Afteradditional mixing, the pH was measured and found to be pH 5.0 due to theacidity contributed by the tomato paste. The slurry was heated to atemperature of 180° F. to 190° F. by steam injection, adding about 30lb. of water to the batch via condensation. The slurry was passed twicethrough a Stephan Microcutter, Model No. MC-12 equipped with a 0.05-0.10mm ring and strained through a 0.033″ screen.

The product was filled into 113-gram glass jars at a temperature of 170°F. The jars were then capped and thermally processed in a retort at 250°F. for 45 minutes as required by 21 C.F.R. §113 et seq. “ThermallyProcessed Low-Acid Foods Packaged in Hermetically Sealed Containers.”The pH of PP6327 on the day after processing was 4.96.

PP6327 was evaluated by a trained individual for Flavor on a nine-pointscale. A score of “5” means “I neither like nor dislike” and a score of“6” means “I like slightly.” PP6327 was given a score of “6” on thisFlavor scale.

EXAMPLE 16

This example illustrates pilot plant production of an egg yolkcontaining pear berry medley composition (PP6331) in which the acidulantis comprised of pear puree, white grape juice, red raspberry puree,elderberry juice concentrate and ascorbic acid.

This study was a pilot plant scale up of an earlier Test Kitchen sample,TK337C. TK337C was evaluated by a panel of five (5) tasters and found tohave a highly acceptable taste by all five tasters.

Single-strength pear puree, 125 lb., was added to a kettle equipped witha swept-surface heating capability. The puree was heated to atemperature of 160° F. to 170° F. using the hot water jacket. Onehundred and eleven pounds of this hot pear puree were weighed andtransferred to a second Kettle.

Twenty-five pounds of white grape juice concentrate, 16.68 lb. of driedegg-yolk powder, 20.0 lb. of red raspberry puree, 14.0 lb. of heavycream, 12.5 lb. of full-fat yogurt, 8.75 lb. of medium grain rice flour,7.5 lb. of fresh whole milk, 3.75 lb. of elderberry juice concentrate,0.1 lb. of ascorbic acid, 0.0275 lb. of zinc sulfate were added to thepear puree and 13.2 lb. of batch water in the second kettle and mixedinto a slurry.

The slurry was passed through a Stephan Microcutter, Model No. MC-12,equipped with a blank ring and transferred to a Koven kettle. Afteradditional mixing, the pH was measured and found to be pH 4.14. Theacidic nature of the peach puree and white grape juice concentratecreated sufficient acidity so that addition of a specific acidulant wasunnecessary. The slurry was heated to a temperature of 180° F. to 190°F. by steam injection, adding about 17.5 lb. of water to the batch viacondensation. The slurry was passed twice through a Stephan Microcutter,Model No. MC-12, equipped with a 0.05-0.10 mm ring and strained througha 0.033″ screen.

The product was filled into 113-gram glass jars at a temperature of 150°F. The jars were then capped and thermally processed in a retort at 212°F. for 30 minutes to achieve pasteurization in accordance with 21 C.F.R.§114 et seq. “Acidified Foods.” The pH of PP6331 on the day afterprocessing was 4.08.

EXAMPLE 17

This example illustrates a DHA-enriched egg yolk-containing compositionof “rice cereal & apples.” This composition, identified as PP6685, wasproduced in a pilot plant.

Single-strength apple puree, 55 lb., was added to a kettle equipped witha swept-surface heating capability. The puree was heated to atemperature of 160° F. to 170° F. using the hot water jacket.

Seven pounds of apple juice concentrate, 12.0 lb. of DHA-enriched driedegg-yolk powder, 2.0 lb. of medium grain rice flour, 0.04 lb. ofascorbic acid, 0.045 lb. of ground cinnamon, 0.02 lb. (9.08 g) ofvitamin premix, and 0.011 lb. (5.0 g) of zinc sulfate were mixed with 17lb. of batch water and the 55 pounds of hot apple puree. Ferrous sulfateheptahydrate, 0.03 lb. (13.62 g), and citric acid, 0.02 lb. (9.08grams), were dissolved in a portion of the batch water to form a complexof ferrous iron and citric acid. The ferrous sulfate-citric acidsolution was added and mixing was continued.

The slurry was passed through a Stephan Microcutter, Model No. MC-12,equipped with a blank ring and transferred to a Koven kettle. Afteradditional mixing, the pH was measured and found to be pH 4.18. Fortygrams of citric acid were added to achieve a pH less than 4.05. Theslurry was heated to a temperature of 190° F. by steam injection; about6.84 lb. of water were added to the batch via condensation of the steam.The slurry was made to 100 lb. by adding 6.6 lb. of water. The slurrywas passed twice through a Stephan Microcutter, Model No. MC-12,equipped with a 0.05-0.10 mm ring, and then was strained through a 0.033inch screen.

The product was filled into 113-gram glass jars at a temperature of 132°F. The jars were then capped and thermally processed in a retort at 212°F. for 30 minutes to achieve pasteurization in accordance with 21 C.F.R.§114 et seq. “Acidified Foods.” The pH of PP6685 on the day afterprocessing was 4.00.

EXAMPLE 18

This example illustrates a control composition of “rice cereal & apples”that contained no egg yolk. This composition, identified as PP6684, wasproduced in the pilot plant.

Single-strength apple puree, 60 lb., was added to a kettle equipped witha swept-surface heating capability. The puree was heated to atemperature of 160° F. to 170° F. using the hot water jacket.

Seven pounds of apple juice concentrate, 6.0 lb. of medium grain riceflour, 0.04 lb. of ascorbic acid, 0.045 lb. of ground cinnamon, 0.02 lb.(9.08 g) of vitamin premix, and 0.011 lb. (5.0 g) of zinc sulfate weremixed with 20 lb. of batch water and the 55 pounds of hot apple puree.Ferrous sulfate heptahydrate, 0.03 lb. (13.62 g), and citric acid, 0.02lb. (9.08 grams), were dissolved in a portion of the batch water to forma complex of ferrous iron and citric acid. The ferrous sulfate-citricacid solution was added and mixing was continued.

The slurry was passed through a Stephan Microcutter, Model No. MC-12,equipped with a blank ring and transferred to a Koven kettle. Afteradditional mixing, the pH was measured and found to be pH 3.48. Theacidic nature of the apple puree and apple juice concentrate createdsufficient acidity so that addition of a specific acidulant wasunnecessary. The slurry was heated to a temperature of 190° F. by steaminjection, adding about 6.84 lb. of water to the batch via condensationof the steam. The slurry was made to 100 lb. by adding 1.0 lb. of water.The slurry was passed twice through a Stephan Microcutter, Model No.MC-12, equipped with a 0.05-0.10 mm ring, and then was strained througha 0.033″ screen.

The product was filled into 113-gram glass jars at a temperature of 140°F. The jars were then capped and thermally processed in a retort at 212°F. for 30 minutes to achieve pasteurization in accordance with 21 C.F.R.§114 et seq. “Acidified Foods.” The pH of PP6684 on the day afterprocessing was 3.50.

EXAMPLE 19

This example illustrates a DHA-enriched egg yolk-containing compositionof “oatmeal & pears.” This composition, identified as PP6687, wasproduced in a pilot plant.

Single-strength pear puree, 60 lb., was added to a kettle equipped witha swept-surface heating capability. The puree was heated to atemperature of 160° F. to 170° F. using the hot water jacket.

Seven pounds of pear juice concentrate, 12.0 lb. of DHA-enriched driedegg yolk powder, 2.0 lb. of baby oat flakes, 0.50 lb. of frozen blanchedginger, 0.04 lb. of ascorbic acid, 0.02 lb. (9.08 g) of vitamin premix,and 0.011 lb. (5.0 g) of zinc sulfate were mixed with 12 lb. of batchwater and the 60 pounds of hot pear puree. Ferrous sulfate heptahydrate,0.03 lb. (13.62 g), and citric acid, 0.02 lb. (9.08 grams), weredissolved in a portion of the batch water to form a complex of ferrousiron and citric acid. The ferrous sulfate-citric acid solution was addedand mixing was continued.

The slurry was passed through a Stephan Microcutter, Model No. MC-12,equipped with a blank ring and transferred to a Koven kettle. Afteradditional mixing, the pH was measured and found to be pH 4.17.Forty-five grams of citric acid were added to achieve an unprocessed pHless than 4.05. The slurry was heated to a temperature of 190° F. bysteam injection, adding about 6.44 lb. of water to the batch viacondensation of the steam. The slurry was made to 100 lb. by adding 5.6lb. of water. The slurry was passed twice through a Stephan Microcutter,Model No. MC-12, equipped with a 0.05-0.10 mm ring, and then wasstrained through a 0.033 inch screen.

The product was filled into 113-gram glass jars at a temperature of 113°F. The jars were then capped and thermally processed in a retort at 212°F. for 30 minutes to achieve pasteurization in accordance with 21 C.F.R.§114 et seq., “Acidified Foods.” The pH of PP6687 on the day afterprocessing was 4.09.

EXAMPLE 20

This example illustrates a control composition of “oatmeal & pears” thatwas free of egg yolk. This composition, identified as PP6686, wasproduced in the pilot plant.

Single-strength pear puree, 60 lb., was added to a kettle equipped witha swept-surface heating capability. The puree was heated to atemperature of 160° F. to 170° F. using the hot water jacket.

Seven pounds of pear juice concentrate, 6.0 lb. of baby oat flakes, 0.04lb. of ascorbic acid, 0.50 lb. of frozen blanched ginger, 0.02 lb. (9.08g) of vitamin premix, and 0.011 lb. (5.0 g) of zinc sulfate were mixedwith 20 lb. of batch water and the 60 pounds of hot pear puree. Ferroussulfate heptahydrate, 0.03 lb. (13.62 g), and citric acid, 0.02 lb.(9.08 grams), were dissolved in a portion of the batch water to form acomplex of ferrous iron and citric acid. The ferrous sulfate-citric acidsolution was added and mixing was continued.

The slurry was passed through a Stephan Microcutter, Model No. MC-12,equipped with a blank ring and transferred to a Koven kettle. Afteradditional mixing, the pH was measured and found to be pH 3.71. Theacidic nature of the pear puree and pear juice concentrate createdsufficient acidity so that addition of a specific acidulant wasunnecessary. The slurry was heated to a temperature of 190° F. by steaminjection, adding about 6.38 lb. of water to the batch via condensationof the steam. The slurry was made to 100 lb. by adding 2.0 lb. of water.The slurry was passed twice through a Stephan Microcutter, Model No.MC-12, equipped with a 0.05-0.10 mm ring, and then was strained througha 0.033″ screen.

The product was filled into 113-gram glass jars at a temperature of 133°F. The jars were then capped and thermally processed in a retort at 212°F. for 30 minutes to achieve pasteurization in accordance with 21 C.F.R.§114 et seq. “Acidified Foods.” The pH of PP6686 on the day afterprocessing was 3.78.

EXAMPLE 21

This example illustrates a DHA-enriched egg yolk-containing compositionof “pear berry medley.” This composition, identified as PP6690, wasproduced in a pilot plant.

Single-strength pear puree was added to a kettle equipped with aswept-surface heating capability. The puree was heated to a temperatureof 160° F. to 180° F. using the hot water jacket. Hot pear puree, 44.4lb., was weighed and transferred to a second kettle. Ten pounds of whitegrape juice concentrate, 12.0 lb. of dried egg yolk powder, 10.0 lb. ofred raspberry puree, 5.6 lb. of heavy cream, 5.0 lb. of full fat yogurt,0.8 lb. of medium grain rice flour, 3.0 lb. of fresh whole milk, 2.0 lb.of elderberry juice concentrate, 0.04 lb. of ascorbic acid, and 0.01 lb.of zinc sulfate were added to the pear puree and mixed into a slurry.

The slurry was passed through a Stephan Microcutter, Model No. MC-12,equipped with a blank ring and transferred to a Koven kettle. Afteradditional mixing, the pH was measured and found to be pH 4.28.Seventy-five grams of citric acid were added to achieve an unprocessedpH less than 4.15. The slurry was heated to a temperature of 180° F. to185° F. by steam injection, adding about 7.2 lb. of water to the batchvia condensation of the steam. The slurry was made to 100 lb. by adding2.6 lb. of water. The slurry was passed twice through a StephanMicrocutter, Model No. MC-12, equipped with a 0.05-0.10 mm ring, andstrained through a 0.033 inch screen.

The product was filled into 113-gram glass jars at a temperature of 133°F. The jars were then capped and thermally processed in a retort at 212°F. for 30 minutes to achieve pasteurization in accordance with 21 C.F.R.§114 et seq. “Acidified Foods.” The pH of PP6690 on the day afterprocessing was 3.95.

EXAMPLE 22

This example illustrates pilot plant production of a control pear berrymedley composition (PP6688) free of egg yolk.

Single-strength pear puree was added to a kettle equipped with aswept-surface heating capability. The puree was heated to a temperatureof 160° F. to 170° F. using the hot water jacket. Hot pear puree, 44.4lb., was weighed and transferred to a second kettle. Ten pounds of whitegrape juice concentrate, 10.0 lb. of red raspberry puree, 5.6 lb. ofheavy cream, 5.0 lb. of full fat yogurt, 8.0 lb. of medium grain riceflour, 3.0 lb. of fresh whole milk, 0.5 lb. of elderberry juiceconcentrate, 0.04 lb. of ascorbic acid, and 0.01 lb. of zinc sulfatewere added to the pear puree and 7.5 lb. of batch water in the secondkettle and mixed into a slurry.

The slurry was passed through a Stephan Microcutter, Model No. MC-12,equipped with a blank ring and transferred to a Koven kettle. Afteradditional mixing, the pH was measured and found to be pH 3.74. Theslurry was heated to a temperature of 180° F. to 185° F. by steaminjection, adding about 6 lb. of water to the batch via condensation ofthe steam. The slurry was made to 100 lb. by adding 2.0 lb. of water.The slurry was passed twice through a Stephan Microcutter, Model No.MC-12, equipped with a 0.05-0.10 mm ring, and strained through a 0.033″screen.

The product was filled into 113-gram glass jars at a temperature of 144°F. The jars were then capped and thermally processed in a retort at 212°F. for 30 minutes to achieve 45% pasteurization in accordance with 21C.F.R. §114 et seq. “Acidified Foods.” The pH of PP6688 on the day afterprocessing was 3.69.

EXAMPLE 23

This example illustrates pilot plant production of a DHA-enriched eggyolk composition described as “carrot medley”, which contains no addedacidulant. This composition, identified as PP6656, was produced in apilot plant.

Carrot puree is prepared by processing frozen carrots in a FitzpatrickComminutor, Model No. FASO-20, operating at slow speed and a temperatureof 200° F. to 205° F. (205° F. target) with a 3/16″ or ¼″ screen. Thepuree is strained by passing it through a Stephan Microcutter, Model No.100 or 100DII, equipped with a 0.05-0.10 mm ring. The soluble sugarcontent of such a carrot puree was adjusted to 20° Brix by adding carrotjuice concentrate. Sixty pounds of this Brix-adjusted carrot puree weretransferred to a Koven Kettle capable of holding 300 lb. of product.

Twelve pounds of DHA-enriched dried egg yolk, 3.0 lb. of medium grainrice flour, and 0.01 lb. of zinc sulfate were stirred into the carrotpuree along with 20 lb. of batch water.

The slurry was passed through a Stephan Microcutter, Model No. MC-12,equipped with a blank ring and transferred to a Koven kettle. The slurrywas heated to a temperature of 180° F. to 190° F. by steam injection,adding about 5 lb. of water to the batch via condensation of the steam.The slurry was made to 100 lb. by adding 2.0 lb. of water. The slurrywas passed twice through a Stephan Microcutter, Model No. MC-12 equippedwith a 0.05-0.10 mm ring, and then strained through a 0.033 inch screen.

The product was filled into 113-gram glass jars at a temperature of 138°F. The jars were then capped and thermally processed in a retort at 250°F. for 40 minutes as required by 21 C.F.R. § 113 et seq. “ThermallyProcessed Low-Acid Foods Packaged in Hermetically Sealed Containers.”The pH of PP6656 on the day after processing was 5.49.

EXAMPLE 24

This example illustrates pilot plant production of an egg yolk-freecontrol composition described as “carrot medley.” This composition,identified as PP6654, was produced in the pilot plant.

Carrot puree is prepared by processing frozen carrots in a FitzpatrickComminutor, Model No. FASO-20, operating at slow speed and a temperatureof 200° F. to 205° F. (205° F. target) with a 3/16″ or ¼″ screen. Thepuree is strained by passing it through a Stephan Microcutter, Model No.100 or 100DII, equipped with a 0.05-0.10 mm ring. The soluble sugarcontent of such a carrot puree was adjusted to 20° Brix by adding carrotjuice concentrate. Ninety-two pounds of this Brix-adjusted carrot pureewere transferred to a Koven Kettle capable of holding 300 lb. ofproduct.

Three pounds of medium grain rice flour and 0.01 lb. of zinc sulfatewere stirred into the pea puree. The slurry was passed through a StephanMicrocutter, Model No. MC-12, equipped with a blank ring and transferredto a Koven kettle. The slurry was heated to a temperature of 180° F. to190° F. by steam injection, adding about 5 lb. of water to the batch viacondensation of the steam. The slurry was made to 100 lb. by adding 6lb. of water. The slurry was passed twice through a Stephan Microcutter,Model No. MC-12 equipped with a 0.05-0.10 mm ring, and then strainedthrough a 0.033″ screen.

The product was filled into 113-gram glass jars at a temperature of 110°F. The jars were then capped and thermally processed in a retort at 250°F. for 40 minutes as required by 21 C.F.R. § 113 et seq. “ThermallyProcessed Low-Acid Foods Packaged in Hermetically Sealed Containers.”The pH of PP6654 on the day after processing was 5.04.

EXAMPLE 25

This example illustrates pilot plant production of a DHA-enriched eggyolk composition described as “sweet pea medley”, which contained noadded acidulant. This composition, identified as PP6673, was produced ina pilot plant.

Pea puree was prepared by processing frozen peas in a FitzpatrickComminutor, Model No. FASO-20, operating at slow speed and a temperatureof 200° F. to 205° F. (205° F. target) with a 3/16″ or ¼″ screen. Thepuree was strained by passing it through a Stephan Microcutter, ModelNo. 100 or 100DII, equipped with a 0.05-0.10 mm ring. Sixty-two poundsof such a pea puree were transferred to a Koven Kettle capable ofholding 300 lb. of product.

Twelve pounds of DHA-enriched dried egg yolk, 1 lb. of medium grain riceflour, and 0.01 lb. of zinc sulfate were stirred into the pea pureealong with 20 lb. of batch water.

The slurry was passed through a Stephan Microcutter, Model No. MC-12,equipped with a blank ring, and transferred to a Koven kettle. Theslurry was heated to a temperature of 190° F. by steam injection, addingabout 3 lb. of water to the batch via condensation of the steam. Theslurry was made to 100 lb. by adding 1.8 lb. of water. The slurry waspassed twice through a Stephan Microcutter, Model No. MC-12 equippedwith a 0.05-0.10 rrimnng, and then strained through a 0.033 inch screen.

The product was filled into 113-gram glass jars at a temperature of 138°F. The jars were then capped and thermally processed in a retort at 250°F. for 40 minutes as required by 21 C.F.R. § 113 et seq. “ThermallyProcessed Low-Acid Foods Packaged in Hermetically Sealed Containers.”The pH of PP6673 on the day after processing was 6.03.

EXAMPLE 26

This example illustrates pilot plant production of an egg yolk-freecontrol composition of “sweet pea medley.” This composition, identifiedas PP6671, was produced in the pilot plant.

Pea puree was prepared by processing frozen peas in a FitzpatrickComminutor, Model No. FASO-20, operating at slow speed and a temperatureof 200° F. to 205° F. (205° F. target) with a 3/16″ or ¼″ screen. Thepuree was strained by passing it through a Stephan Microcutter, ModelNo. 100 or 100DII, equipped with a 0.05-0.10 mm ring. Ninety-four poundsof such a pea puree were transferred to a Koven Kettle capable ofholding 300 lb. of product.

One pound of medium grain rice flour and 0.01 lb. of zinc sulfate werestirred into the pea puree. The slurry was passed through a StephanMicrocutter, Model No. MC-12, equipped with a blank ring, andtransferred to a Koven kettle. The slurry was heated to a temperature of190° F. by steam injection, adding about 5 lb. of water to the batch viacondensation of the steam. The slurry weighed 100 lb. The slurry waspassed twice through a Stephan Microcutter, Model No. MC-12 equippedwith a 0.05-0.10 mm ring, and then strained through a 0.033″ screen.

The product was filled into 113-gram glass jars at a temperature of 143°F. The jars were then capped and thermally processed in a retort at 250°F. for 40 minutes as required by 21 C.F.R. § 113 et seq. “ThermallyProcessed Low-Acid Foods Packaged in Hermetically Sealed Containers.”The pH of PP6671 on the day after processing was 5.83.

EXAMPLE 27

This example illustrates the effects on visual function of feedingsemi-solid baby food comprising DHA-enriched egg yolk to healthy, breastfed term infants.

Healthy breast-feeding infants six months of age were randomly dividedinto two groups. One group received control baby foods and the otherreceived baby foods containing DHA-enriched egg yolk. Breast feeding wascontinued in both groups for approximately three months afterintroduction of the baby foods into the infants' diets. Fifty-onebreast-fed infants completed the study: 26 infants in the group receivedthe control baby food and 25 infants in the group received the babyfoods made with DHA-enriched egg yolks.

Semi-solid baby foods containing DHA-enriched egg yolk and control babyfoods were prepared as described in Examples 17-26. Infants in the DHAgroup were fed baby foods prepared from DHA-enriched eggs (see Examples17, 19, 21, 23 and 25). The amount of DHA-enriched egg yolk in thesefoods was sufficient to provide 110 mg of DHA per 100 grams of food.Each glass jar contained 4 ounces (113 grams) of food. Consequently,each jar of baby food made with DHA-enriched egg yolk contained about125 mg of DHA. The control baby foods contained neither egg yolk and norDHA.

The infants were first fed study foods at approximately 26 weeks of age(6 months) and continued to be fed each day until they reached 52 weeksof age (1 year). Breast feeding continued during this six month period,an average of 3.7±2.2 (mean±S.D.) months in the control group and2.8±2.4 (mean±S.D.) months in the DHA group, respectively. Parents wereprovided with semi-solid baby foods prepared as described in Examples17-26. Infants in the DHA group were fed baby foods prepared fromDHA-enriched egg yolks (see Examples 17, 19, 21, 23 and 25). Infants incontrol group received similar baby foods that were, however, madewithout any egg yolks (see Examples 18, 20, 22, 24 and 26). TheDHA-enriched baby foods contained approximately 115 mg DHA per 100 gramsof food (i.e., about 130 mg DHA/113 g baby food jar). Parents were givena target of providing 1 jar per day of study baby food to their infant.Compliance was estimated from food intake estimated for the first twomonths of the trial by collecting and weighing the opened jars todetermine the amount of food that was not consumed and from red bloodcell fatty acid content. The gravimetric measure indicated that thegroup of breast-fed infants receiving the baby foods made withDHA-enriched egg yolks consumed an average of 72±31 (mean±S.D.) g babyfood/day. Infants receiving the baby foods made with DHA-enriched eggyolks consumed an average of 78 mg DHA/day, with a one-standarddeviation range of 47 to 118 mg/day of supplementary DHA.

Red blood cell fatty acids were measured at enrollment at 26 weeks andat the end of the study at 52 weeks. As shown in Table 11, thebreast-fed infants receiving the control baby foods had an average redblood cell DHA level at 52 weeks of 3.00% of total fatty acids (std.dev.=1.26%) compared to an average of 5.50% (std. dev.=1.67%) for thebreast-fed infants receiving the baby foods made with DHA-enriched eggyolks. This 83% higher red blood cell DHA level of the infants receivingbaby foods made with DHA-enriched egg yolks was statisticallysignificant (P<0.0005).

TABLE 11 Red blood cell DHA Baby food fed to Number level, % of totalbreast-fed infants of infants fatty acids, Statistical from 26 to 52weeks per group at 52 weeks of age significance Control 26 3.00 ± 1.26 P< 0.0005 DHA-egg yolk 25 5.50 ± 1.67

Anthropometric measures, specifically body weight, body length, headcircumference, and sub-scapular and triceps fat-fold thickness, weremonitored at birth, 26 weeks, 39 weeks and at one year of age. Totalantioxidant capacity and basic blood element profiles (i.e., completeblood count, hematocrit, and platelets) were measured at 26 weeks and atthe end of the study (52 weeks).

Visual development was assessed by measuring sweep visual-evokedpotential (VEP) acuity (Hoffman et al., 2003, supra; Birch et al., 2002,supra; Norcia, Vision Res 25: 1399-1408, 1985; Neuringer, Am. J. Clin.Nutrition 71:256S-267S, 2000). Measurements were made at 26, 39, and 52weeks of age. Sweep VEP acuity at these ages in infants is an index ofthe maturation of the retina and visual cortex. As shown in Table 12,VEP acuity at 26 weeks was 0.49 logMAR (logarithm of minutes of arcresolution) and improved to 0.45 logMAR at 39 weeks and to 0.29 logMARat 52 weeks in the breast-fed infants receiving the control baby foods.In the infants receiving the baby foods made with DHA-enriched eggyolks, VEP acuity was 0.48 logMAR at 26 weeks and improved to 0.31logMAR at 39 weeks and to 0.14 logMAR at 52 weeks. Compared to theinfants receiving the control baby foods, the infants receiving the babyfoods made with DHA-enriched egg yolks had improved visual acuity of0.14 logMAR at 39 weeks (P<0.001) and at 52 weeks of age (P<0.0005). TheVEP acuity differences at 39 weeks and 52 weeks, 0.14 logMAR, represent1.5 lines on the eye chart.

VEP acuity at one year was correlated with red blood cell DHA levels atone year (r=−0.38; p=0.006).

TABLE 12 Number Sweep visual-evoked baby food fed to of infantspotential (VEP) acuity breast fed infants per (logarithm of minutes ofarc resolution) from 26 to 52 weeks group 26 weeks 39 weeks 52 weeksControl 26 0.49 0.45 0.29 ± 0.12 DHA-egg yolk 25 0.48 0.31 0.14 ± 0.13Statistical significance n.s. P < 0.001 P < 0.0005

Thus, visual function is improved in healthy, breast-fed term infantsthat are fed semi-solid baby-food compositions containing DHA.

EXAMPLE 28

This example illustrates the effects on cognitive function of feedingsemi-solid baby food comprising DHA-enriched egg yolk to healthy, breastfed term infants at the age of 9 months.

Cognitive development was assessed in infants 9 months of age byconducting means-ends problem solving tests on the healthy breast-fedinfants described in Example 27. The infants were subjected to problemsolving tests based upon protocols developed by P. Willatts (Willatts,Dev. Psych. 20: 389-396, 1984; Willatts, Infant Behav. Dev. 7: 25-34,1984; Willatts, Dev. Psych. 35: 651-667, 1999). The tests measured aninfant's ability to recall the location of a hidden toy, and plan andexecute a sequence of actions to retrieve it. First an adult placed atoy upon a first cloth and moved both objects back away from an infant.The infant was required to pull the cloth, and then grasp the toy. Nextthe adult put the toy close to the child and placed a second cloth overthe toy. The infant was required to remove the cloth and grasp the toy.If the infant failed to perform these pre-test tasks, the trial wasterminated. For the scored test, the adult placed the toy on the firstcloth, covered the toy with the second cloth, and then moved all theseobjects back away from the infant. The behavior of the infant was thenobserved to determine his or her ability to focus and complete the task;i.e., to reach out and grab the first cloth, to pull it together withthe toy and second cloth towards himself or herself, to lift the secondcloth, and to grasp the toy. Each infant was given three such scoredtrials. Each trial was scored on a scale from −1 to 12 by one or moreskilled observers, based upon the infant's ability to focus and completethe task.

As shown in Table 13, in the group of 9-month-old infants receivingcontrol baby-food, the average score on successful trials was 6.31; 11of 26 (42%) had no successful trials. In comparison, in the group of9-month-old infants receiving the baby foods made with DHA-enriched eggyolks, the average score on successful trials was 9.57; only 4 of 25(16%) had no successful trials. The average score of 9.57 from infantsfed DHA in an amount of at least about 50 mg DHA/100 grams represents a52% increase over the average score of 6.31 from infants receiving fed asemi-solid baby food composition that contains less than about 5 mgDHA/100 grams composition (P=0.03, t-test). Statistical analysis of theproportions of infants with no successful trials data using theMann-Whitney test indicated P<0.02.

TABLE 13 Results of two-step problem solving test Baby food fed toNumber of at 9 months of age breast-fed infants infants per AverageScore on Proportion with NO from 26 to 52 weeks group successful trialssuccessful trials Control 26 6.31 ± 5.82 11 of 26 (42%) (Mean ± std.dev.) DHA-egg yolk 25 9.57 ± 4.45  4 of 25 (16%) (Mean ± std. dev.)Statistical significance P = 0.03 P < 0.02 (t-test) (Mann-Whitney test)

EXAMPLE 29

This example illustrates the effects on cognitive function of feedingsemi-solid baby food comprising DHA-enriched egg yolk to healthy, breastfed term infants at the age of 18 months.

Infants described in Examples 27 and 28, upon reaching 18 months of agewere assessed for cognitive function according to the Bayleyneurodevelopmental scales (Bayley, N. The Bayley Scales of InfantDevelopment II. New York: New York Psychological Corp., 1993). In theseassessments, the mental development index (MDI) was determined for eachinfant. In the group of 18-month-old infants who had received thecontrol baby foods, the average MDI score was 103.5±1.9, whereas in thegroup of 18-month-old infants who had received the baby foods made withDHA-enriched egg yolks, the average MDI score was 107.6±3.7 (p=0.29), anincrease of MDI score of about 4%.

These data indicate that an increase in cognitive ability can resultfrom feeding semi-solid baby food comprising DHA-enriched egg yolk tohealthy, breast fed term infants, and that this increase correlates withan increase in DHA levels in red blood cells in these infants.

In view of the above, it will be seen that the several advantages of theinvention are achieved and other advantageous results attained. Asvarious changes could be made in the above methods and compositionswithout departing from the scope of the invention, it is intended thatall matter contained in the above description shall be interpreted asillustrative and not in a limiting sense.

All references cited above in this specification are hereby incorporatedby reference in their entireties. This application also incorporates byreference in their entireties U.S. Patent Application Publication US2004/0091599 published May 13, 2004; U.S. Patent Application Publication2003/0207004 published Nov. 6, 2003; U.S. Pat. No. 6,579,551 issued Jun.17, 2003; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,149,964 issued Nov. 21, 2000. All of theaforementioned applications and patents are incorporated herein in theirentireties by reference. Any discussion of references cited herein isintended merely to summarize the assertions made by their authors and noadmission is made that any reference or portion thereof constitutesrelevant prior art. Applicants reserve the right to challenge theaccuracy and pertinency of the cited references.

1. A method for improving cognitive ability in an infant, the method comprising feeding the infant a shelf-stable semi-solid baby-food composition comprising DHA in an amount of at least about 50 mg DHA/100 grams of composition in an acceptable baby-food preparation for which (a) appearance and color, (b) flavor, and (c) mouthfeel and texture scores on a nine-point hedonic scale are each greater than five, wherein cognitive ability is improved in infants fed the composition comprising DHA in an amount of at least about 50 mg DHA/100 grams of composition in comparison to cognitive ability in infants fed a semi-solid baby food composition containing less than about 5 mg DHA/100 grams of composition.
 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein feeding the infant the composition comprises feeding the infant an amount of the composition sufficient to provide at least about 45 milligrams of DHA in a day.
 3. The method according to claim 1, wherein feeding the infant the composition comprises feeding the infant at least about 50 grams of the composition in a day.
 4. The method according to claim 3, wherein feeding the infant at least about 50 grams of the composition in a day comprises feeding the infant at least about 100 grams of the composition in a day.
 5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the composition comprising DHA in an amount of at least about 50 mg DHA/100 grams of composition comprises DHA in an amount of at least about 100 mg DHA/100 grams of composition.
 6. The method according to claim 5, wherein feeding the infant the composition comprises feeding the infant at least about 50 grams of the composition in a day.
 7. The method according to claim 6, wherein feeding the infant at least about 50 grams of the composition in a day comprises feeding the infant at least about 100 grams of the composition in a day.
 8. The method according to claim 1, wherein feeding the infant the shelf-stable semi-solid baby-food composition comprises feeding the infant the composition from the age of about 6 months.
 9. The method according to claim 1, wherein feeding an infant the composition comprises feeding the infant the composition until the age of about 9 months.
 10. The method according to claim 1, wherein feeding an infant the composition comprises feeding the infant the composition until the age of about one year.
 11. The method according to claim 1, wherein the cognitive ability is improved as measured by improvement of at least about 10% in average scores in a means-ends problem solving test in infants fed the shelf-stable semi-solid baby-food composition comprising DHA in comparison to cognitive ability in control infants fed a semi-solid baby food composition containing less than about 5 mg DHA/100 grams composition.
 12. The method according to claim 11, wherein the improvement of at least about 10% in average scores in a means-ends problem solving test comprises improvement of at least about 10% in average scores in a means-ends problem solving test measured at the age of about 9 months.
 13. The method according to claim 1, wherein the cognitive ability is improved as measured by improvement of at least about 30% in average scores in a means-ends problem solving test in infants fed the shelf-stable semi-solid baby-food composition comprising DHA in comparison to cognitive ability in control infants fed a semi-solid baby food composition containing less than about 5 mg DHA/100 grams of composition.
 14. The method according to claim 1, wherein the cognitive ability is improved as measured by improvement in average mental development index scores of at least about 1% in infants fed the shelf-stable semi-solid baby-food composition comprising DHA in comparison to cognitive ability in infants fed a semi-solid baby food composition containing less than about 5 mg DHA/100 grams of composition.
 15. The method according to claim 14, wherein the infants fed the composition comprising DHA are infants fed the composition until the age of about one year.
 16. The method according to claim 14, wherein the average mental development index scores are average mental development index scores determined at the age of about 18 months.
 17. The method according to claim 1, wherein the improving cognitive ability comprises improving average mental development index scores by at least about 3% in infants fed the shelf-stable semi-solid baby-food composition comprising DHA in comparison to cognitive ability in infants fed a semi-solid baby food composition containing less than about 5 mg DHA/100 grams of composition.
 18. The method according to claim 17, wherein the infants fed the composition comprising DHA are infants fed the composition until the age of about one year.
 19. The method according to claim 18, wherein the average mental development index scores are average mental development index scores determined at the age of about 18 months.
 20. The method according to claim 1, wherein the baby-food composition comprises coagulated egg yolk solids in an amount of from at least about 5% to about 25% (grams/100 grams) of the composition.
 21. The method according to claim 20, wherein the baby-food composition comprises coagulated egg yolk solids containing DHA in an amount of at least about 9 mg DHA/gram of egg yolk solids.
 22. The method according to claim 20, wherein the egg yolk solids comprise about 12% (grams/100 grams) of the composition.
 23. A method for improving cognitive ability in an infant, the method comprising providing a semi-solid baby-food composition having a formula selected on the basis of its containing DHA in an amount of at least about 50 mg DHA/100 grams of composition in an acceptable, shelf-stable baby-food preparation for which (a) appearance and color, (b) flavor, and (c) mouthfeel and texture scores on a nine-point hedonic scale are each greater than five; and feeding the semi-solid baby-food composition to an infant, wherein cognitive ability is improved in infants fed the composition, in comparison to cognitive ability in infants fed a semi-solid baby food composition containing less than about 5 mg DHA/100 grams of composition.
 24. The method according to claim 23, wherein infants fed the composition are infants fed the composition from an age of about 6 months.
 25. The method according to claim 23, wherein infants fed the composition are infants fed the composition until the age of about 9 months.
 26. The method according to claim 25, wherein cognitive ability is improved in infants fed the semi-solid baby food composition, as evidenced by increased average test scores of at least about 10% in a means-ends problem solving test in infants fed the composition comprising DHA, in comparison to cognitive ability of control infants fed a semi-solid baby food composition containing less than about 5 mg DHA/100 grams of composition.
 27. The method according to claim 23, wherein infants fed the composition are infants fed the composition from an age of about 6 months until the age of about 1 year.
 28. The method according to claim 27, wherein cognitive ability is improved as evidenced by increased average test scores in an assessment of mental development index of at least about 1% in comparison to cognitive ability in infants fed a semi-solid baby food composition containing less than about 5 mg DHA/100 grams of composition.
 29. The method according to claim 23, wherein the DHA-containing baby-food composition comprises coagulated egg yolk solids in an amount of from at least about 5% to about 25% (grams/100 grams) of the composition.
 30. The method according to claim 29, wherein the DHA-containing baby-food composition comprises coagulated egg yolk solids containing DHA in an amount of at least about 9 mg DHA/gram of egg yolk solids.
 31. The method according to claim 29, wherein the egg yolk solids comprise about 12% (grams/100 grams) of the composition.
 32. A method for a providing to a consumer, a baby food that improves cognitive ability in an infant, the method comprising providing a shelf-stable semi-solid baby-food composition having a formula selected on the basis of its containing DHA in an amount of at least about 50 mg DHA/100 grams of composition in an acceptable, shelf-stable baby-food preparation for which (a) appearance and Color, (b) flavor, and (c) mouthfeel and texture scores on a nine-point hedonic scale are each greater than five; and selling the baby-food composition to the consumer, wherein cognitive ability is improved in infants fed the composition in comparison to cognitive ability in infants fed a composition containing less than about 5 mg DHA/100 grains of composition.
 33. The method according to claim 32, wherein the DHA-containing baby-food composition containing DHA in an amount of at least about 50 mg DHA/100 grams of composition is a DHA-containing baby-food composition containing DHA in an amount of at least about 100 mg DHA/100 grams of composition.
 34. The method according to claim 32, wherein the DHA-containing baby-food composition comprises coagulated egg yolk solids in an amount of from at least about 5% to about 25% (grams/100 grams) of the composition.
 35. The method according to claim 34, wherein the DHA-containing baby-food composition comprises coagulated egg yolk solids containing DHA in an amount of at least about 9 mg DHA/gram of egg yolk solids.
 36. The method according to claim 35, wherein the egg yolk solids comprise about 12% (grams/100 grams) of the composition.
 37. The method according to claim 32, wherein infants fed the shelf-stable semi-solid baby-food composition comprising DHA are infants fed the shelf-stable semi-solid baby-food composition comprising DHA from the age of about 6 months.
 38. The method according to claim 32, wherein infants fed the shelf-stable semi-solid baby-food composition comprising DHA are infants fed the shelf-stable semi-solid baby-food composition comprising DHA until the age of about 9 months.
 39. The method according to claim 32, wherein infants fed the shelf-stable semi-solid baby-food composition comprising DHA are infants fed the shelf-stable semi-solid baby-food composition comprising DHA until the age of about 1 year.
 40. The method according to claim 32, wherein cognitive ability is improved as indicated by an increase in average test scores of at least about 10% in a means-ends problem solving test in infants fed the shelf-stable semi-solid baby-food composition comprising DHA, in comparison to cognitive ability in control infants fed a semi-solid baby food composition containing less than about 5 mg DHA/100 grams of composition.
 41. The method according to claim 32, wherein cognitive ability is improved as indicated by an increase in average test scores of at least about 30% in a means-ends problem solving test in infants fed the shelf-stable semi-solid baby-food composition comprising DHA, in comparison to cognitive ability in control infants fed a semi-solid baby food composition containing less than about 5 mg DHA/100 grams of composition.
 42. The method according to claim 32, wherein cognitive ability is improved as indicated by an increase in average test scores of at least about 1% in mental development index in infants in comparison to cognitive ability in infants fed a composition containing less than about 5 mg DHA/100 grams of composition.
 43. The method of claim 42, wherein average test scores are average test scores of infants of about 18 months of age. 